UNFAIR TREATMENT | Nurses in Iligan City resign after not receiving salary for four months

May 10, 2021 , 11:31 AM

(May 10, 2021) – With hospitals already struggling to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, more than a dozen nurses in Iligan City have resigned after not receiving their pay for the last four months.

According to the nurse source who refused to disclose his real name for fear of reprisal, they started working at the Gregorio Lluch Memorial Hospital on March 29, 2020. They were promised a monthly salary of P24,000. They, however, only received P18,000 in their first few months. Despite this, he said they continued their work because of their sworn duty to help amid the health crisis.

But since the start of 2021, he said they haven’t received any salary at all. The hospital allegedly told them that it’s the local government that should pay them since they were not directly hired by the Department of Health (DOH).

“Four months walang suweldo. Walang kontrata. Nangako ng P24,000. Four months after contract signing, P18,000 na lang. Nagbitiw kami. Breach of contract daw. Hindi epektibo ang kontrata sapagkat hindi ito napatunayan na COVID nurses kami,” said the nurse source in a text message to News5, adding they weren’t also issued certificate employment.

As of posting, a total of 14 nurses have resigned.

Iligan City Coun. Noli Pardillo admitted they forgot about it since there were other programs in the said hospital. He explained their budget was lacking as they requested the increase of nurses’ salary to P18,000 from the initial proposal of P15,000, resulting in over P300 million worth of still unpaid salaries.

“Nakaligtaan ito. Lahat ng programs doon, ito lahat sa city hospital, doon lahat nilagay, tapos hindi umano ito nabigyan ng budget para sa increase (ng sahod),” said Pardillo. “Hindi kasya ang budget kaya hindi muna nila binigay ang suweldo, hinihintay na dumating ang supplemental budget.”

Pardillo said he had not heard of nurses resigning because their list was still complete. He added the supplementary budget has already been approved last week.

The DOH has repeatedly assured that the salaries and benefits will be given properly to healthcare workers. Many health groups, however, have been complaining recently due to long delays and inadequate amounts.

Last Friday, on Healthcare Workers Day, Sen. Risa Hontiveros called out DOH secretary Francisco Duque III for being “out-of-touch” with the dire situation of healthcare workers, urging the government to provide better working conditions.

“All year long, health workers have made desperate calls for better pay and genuine support. The health secretary should stop giving them the cold shoulder, and should explain why he fails to do his job when health workers wholeheartedly do theirs with their lives on the line,” said Hontiveros.

Iligan City has recorded nearly 1,700 COVID-19 cases, including 135 active ones and 94 fatalities.

Iligan City Dr. Leonell Quitos said COVID-19 wards of all hospitals are now at full capacity, with a shortage of medical supplies adding to the mounting problems.

(With reports from Merlyn Manos, News 5, Kiko Demigillo/PM)

Privacy Statement

Our Privacy Commitment

TV5 Network Inc. values and respects your privacy. We are committed to safeguarding your personal data in compliance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and its implementing rules and regulations.

We have developed a Privacy Policy that adopts and observes appropriate standards for personal data protection. While our Privacy Policy sets out the general principles governing the collection, use, and disclosure of our users’ personal information, our Privacy Commitment seeks to inform you more about TV5’s privacy practices.

Why do we collect your personal information (as applicable)?

We may collect and maintain basic information about you as site user of TV5 sites for the following purposes:

To deliver news and updates on current events, sports, esports and entertainment;
To share livestreams of news and sports events;
To understand our viewers’ needs and preferences;
To meet legal and regulatory requirements; and
To perform other processes or disclosures that are required to comply with pertinent laws, rules, or regulations.

Where do we get your personal information?

There are several ways we collect your personal information.

Information that you personally provided.

Most of the personal information we have are those that you have provided us when you:
- Register to our programs or services;
- Inquired, filed a complaint or requested for our services;
- Took part in our research and surveys; and/or
- Became our Partner, Vendor, Contractor or Supplier.

Information we collect during your engagement with us

We also collect information as you use our products and services, like:
- Viewing our websites;
- Activities that are being tracked by our website cookies;
- Calling our hotline;
- Using our apps, websites, and self-service channels and portals; and/or
- Joining our promos, prize raffles, or rewards and loyalty programs.

Information we collect from other sources

Other means of collection of information may be through:
- Our market research initiatives;
- When you visit and use our websites and mobile application; and
- Subsidiaries, affiliates, and third-party business partners to whom you have given consent to share your information to us.

When do we disclose personal information?

There may be instances when we are required to share the information you provided us. In such cases, we ensure that your personal information will be disclosed on a confidential manner, through secure channels and in compliance with the Data Privacy Act and other privacy laws.

We will never share, rent, or sell your personal information to third parties outside of TV5 except in special cases where you have given consent, and in cases described in our privacy policy.

In some instances, we may be required to disclose your personal information to our agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, business partners and other third-party agencies and service providers as part of our regular business operations and for the provision of our programs and services. This means we might share your information with our service providers, contractors, and professional advisers who help us provide our services.

How we protect your personal information

The integrity, confidentiality, and security of your information is important to us. We have implemented technical, organizational, and physical security measures that are designed to protect your information from unauthorized or fraudulent access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, and other unlawful activities.

We also put in effect the following safeguards:

We keep and protect your information using a secured server behind a firewall, encryption and security controls;
We keep your information only for as long as it is necessary for us to (a) provide the products and services that you avail from us, (b) for our legitimate business purposes, (c) to comply with pertinent laws, and (d) for special cases that will require the exercise or defense of legal claims;
We limit the access to your information only to qualified and authorized personnel who are trained to handle your information with strict confidentiality;
We undergo regular audits and rigorous testing of our infrastructure’s security protocols to ensure your data is always protected;
We promptly notify you and the National Privacy Commission when sensitive personal information that may, under the circumstances, be used to enable identity fraud are reasonably believed to have been acquired by an unauthorized person; and
We let you update your information securely to keep our records accurate.

TV5 will not collect, use, or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than the purpose that you may have given your consent for.

What are your choices?

We make sure that we have your consent to continue to collect, use, and disclose your personal information for the purposes that we have identified. We want you to know that you may object or withdraw your consent and/or edit your consent preferences at any time.

If you wish to have access to the personal information in our custody or if you think that the personal information you provided is incomplete, or otherwise inaccurate, you may get in touch with our Data Protection Officer through the contact details provided below. In some instances, we may request for supporting documents or proof before we effect requested changes.

Data Protection Officer
TV5 Network Inc.
Reliance corner Sheridan Streets
Mandaluyong City
tv5dataprivacy@tv5.com.ph

What happens when there are changes in our Policy?

From time to time, we may update our privacy policy and practices to comply with changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, adapt to new technologies and protocols, and align with the best practices of the industry.

You will be provided notices if the changes are significant and, if we are required by law, we will obtain your updated consent.