VARIOUS UST labor unions called on the University administration to stand up against the “unfair” implementation of Manila’s “contentious” health permit mandate, as they mounted a protest at the Lacson gate on Aug. 9, the start of regular classes at the University.
The protest in front of the UST Hospital was joined primarily by members of the Ugnayan ng Nagkakaisang Manggagawa ng UST Hospital (UNM-UST), donning their hospital scrubs and led by their president, Donell Siazon.
Members of the Organisasyon ng Nagkakaisang Empleyado ng UST (ONE-UST) and the Council of Teachers and Staff of Colleges and Universities of the Philippines (CoTeSCUP) also joined.
“Napakaganda ng layunin ng ordinansa (Manila Ordinance 8793) pero pagdating sa implementasyon, taliwas sa layunin,” Siazon told those gathered at the Lacson gate. “Ang health permit ni Lacuna, pasakit sa mga manggagawa.”
In an interview with the Varsitarian, Siazon asserted that the UST Hospital was better equipped to carry out the tests required by the City of Manila, compared with the public health facilities.
“Since kino-conduct ‘yong annual examination sa amin, dapat i-recognize ito ng LGU kasi mas pulido ‘yong pagkakagawa ng examination sa mga manggagawa dahil tinitignan nga ito ng doctors namin,” he said.
“Walang tiwala si Honey Lacuna sa isinisagawang annual physical examination sa’tin. Mas nagtitiwala siya sa mga health centers niya na kung saan, ang obserbasyon ng mga kasamahan natin, ito ay madumi,” he added.
Although UST faculty can avail themselves of routine procedures like scans, blood tests, and stool exams at the UST Hospital or Health Service, the Manila Health Department requires that the drug test, urinalysis, and stool exam be conducted at its own facility.
Tests for the health certificate are being administered at the often crowded public health laboratory on Alvarez Street, the former site of the Sta. Cruz Public Library, the facilities of which became the subject of earlier complaints from UST unions.
Siazon noted the irony of Manila Ordinance 8793, or the Sanitation and Disinfection Code of the City of Manila, being implemented in unsanitary facilities.
“Ang observation ng mga manggagawa na nag-undergo doon sa mga examination na sinasabi ng LGU, taliwas dun sa nasa ordinansa,” he said. “Kung sanitation ang issue dito, dapat malinis ‘yong mga facilities nila.”
Implementation ‘unfair’
Asst. Prof. Edilberto Gonzaga, executive vice president of the UST Faculty Union, decried the unjust enforcement of the health permit mandate, as it exempts licensed professionals who have obtained their professional tax receipts (PTR).
“Kung ako may PTR at ako ang may sakit, hindi nila made-detect,” he said. “Samantalang ‘yong sa nagpa-health permit na-detect na may sakit hindi siya makakatrabaho. That’s unfair,” Gonzaga told the Varsitarian.
CoTeSCUP member John Ignacio echoed this concern, saying the Manila ordinance was “contentious” and only promotes “redundancy.”
“The problematic statement made by UST and the City of Manila [was] that the health permit can be substituted by the PTR,” he said. “Anong connection ng (PTR) sa health situation?”
Ignacio called on the city government of Manila to heed the unions’ requests for dialogue.
“If they would listen, if they would open their doors and really discuss these things to us, then a legal proceeding may not be necessary,” he said.
UST released a statement on Wednesday, indirectly responding the the pleas of the labor unions and claiming that it was engaged in “ongoing dialogues” with its stakeholders.
ONE-UST said that while the UST administration had yet to reach out to its members for the dialogue, it hoped that the statement was genuine and not “mere lip service.”
Student activists also mounted a brief protest on Friday afternoon at the Plaza Mayor in response to campus issues such as the tuition hike and the labor unions’ objections to the mandatory health permit.
