UST has urged its employees to ensure “full cooperation and genuine compliance” with the new city mandate requiring workers to submit health certificates, warning that failure to do so could result in their MyUSTe accounts being locked, receiving formal notices to comply, and “other measures.”
On July 18, the Office of the Secretary General (OSG) issued a list of answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) about compliance with the Sanitation and Disinfection Code of Manila. This followed a meeting with Manila City Health Office chief Dr. Arnold “Poks” Pangan, husband of Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna, on June 26.
The OSG said UST would oversee compliance by requiring employees to submit a hard copy of their health certificate or professional tax receipt to the UST Health Service.
In the future, employees may be asked to upload these documents to their MyUSTe portal accounts.
Employees who have yet to comply will receive reminders upon logging on to their MyUSTe accounts. These reminders can be dismissed but must be addressed before the July 31 deadline.
Failure to comply by the end of the month will result in employees being barred from accessing their MyUSTe portal accounts, which will prevent them from conducting any transaction with the University.
Access will be restored only after submission of the required documents, with exceptions for those holding a professional tax receipt who are exempt by law from the Manila health permit requirement.
“If the University staff still fails to comply, he/she may be given a written memo to remind him/her of the submission,” the OSG said. “Subsequent non-compliance may be subjected to other measures to prevent penalties for the individual and the institution.”
To encourage compliance with the health certificate requirement, employees who had scheduled appointments on July 26, between 6:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., will be prioritized from the Manila Health Department, the OSG said.
The required laboratory procedures, including a drug test and stool exam, are conducted at the former site of the Sta. Cruz Public Library on Alvarez Street, the sub-par facilities of which were earlier criticized by UST’s labor unions.
Substandard toilets, large crowds: UST unions complain vs Manila health permit
Only 850 of the 1,700 faculty members and 800 support staff of the University had complied with the mandatory health permit as of June 21.
Health certificates became a requirement to operate a business in Manila after the passage of Manila Ordinance 8793, or the Sanitation and Disinfection Code of the City of Manila, in late 2021.
According to Section 85 of the ordinance, individual violators may be penalized with fines of up to P5,000 plus the revocation of the health certificate.
Establishments found violating the ordinance may also be imposed a fine not exceeding P5,000. The Manila Health Department may also recommend its permanent closure.
Earlier, presidents of the UST Faculty Union, Samahang Manggagawa ng UST, and Ugnayan ng Nagkakaisang Manggagawa ng UST Hospital urged the University to use existing health benefits to pay for the cost of the health permit now imposed by the City of Manila.
Medical benefits should pay for Manila health permit, labor unions tell UST admin
However, the Manila Health Department requires that the drug test, urinalysis and stool exam be conducted at its public health laboratory.
To secure a health permit, which is mandatory for all employees in Manila, applicants must pay P625 for laboratory procedures. The amount excludes the cost of X-rays, which may be obtained from a hospital.
Only professionals who have obtained the yearly professional tax receipt, such as lawyers, doctors, and licensed teachers, are exempted from the permit based on the Local Government Code of 1991. S.V.B. Berba