QUESTION: How do the gaps between the accommodation, salaries, and risk allowances

issued for Filipino nurses affect their job satisfaction and work performance?

PRIMARY CLAIM: The work performance and job satisfaction of nurses in the
Philippines, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, are heavily influenced by
accommodation, risk allowances, and the salaries they receive.

ARGUMENT EVIDENCE EXPLANATION CITATION

The shortening The Department of As Sarao points out Jerome Aning, T. G. S.

of quarantine Health has released a in her article, the (2022, January 12).
period for new guideline on guidelines for Shorter quarantine
health care reducing the isolation decreasing the for fully vaccinated
professionals, period for healthcare isolation period of health workers for
particularly workers. Moreover, the COVID-19 positive 'extreme'
nurses, can be Infection Prevention and health care workers circumstances.
considered Control Committees have been criticized INQUIRER.net.
illogical as it (IPCC) at hospitals has as it could accelerate Retrieved March 2,
discredits the been given the authority the spreading of the 2022, from
risks of to impose reduced virus. Moreover, it https://newsinfo.inqu
healthcare quarantine protocols for fails to take into irer.net/1539253/shor
professionals in fully vaccinated consideration the ter-quarantine-for-
acquiring the healthcare workers who health and safety of fully-vaxxed-health-
Coronavirus are close contacts, based healthcare workers workers-for-extreme-
disease on health care capacity who are constantly circumstances
(COVID-19). needs and individual risk needed in order for Ramos, C. M. (2022,
assessments. In the the healthcare January
event of a serious industry to efficiently 10). Villanueva:
staffing shortage, the work especially Shortened
hospital IPCC may during the COVID-19 quarantine period
reduce the isolation pandemic. It is for health workers
period for fully further referred to as a risky move.
vaccinated healthcare "illogical and INQUIRER.net.
personnel with unscientific" to make https://newsinfo.inq
confirmed COVID-19 to distinctions between uirer.net/1538603/v
5 days from the date of the general public illanueva-
the test or onset of and health workers. shortened-
symptoms. This The quarantine period quarantine-period-
significantly heightens is imposed to prevent
 the spread of
for-fully-vaxxed-
the risk of transmitting COVID-19 but the
health-workers-
the virus as healthcare guideline opposes
risky-move.
personnel constantly this goal and

interact with their heightens the risk of

patients, thereby the healthcare Sarao, Z. (2022, January

increasing susceptibility workers, patients, and 10). Group slams

to the virus. significant others move to shorten
Furthermore, the lack of who would have isolation period for
consideration for their direct contact with COVID-positive
safety influences their the COVID-19 health workers.
willingness in positive healthcare INQUIRER.net.
performing their roles personnel. This could https://newsinfo.inq
and overall job further lead to uirer.net/1538623/h
satisfaction. healthcare workers ealth-workers-slam-
leaving their jobs for move-to-shorten-
better opportunities isolation-period-
which results to for-covid-positive-
understaffing and health-workers
increased workload.

Classification of The Department of The Alliance of ‌DOH launches “more

risk allowances Health has launched the Health Workers inclusive” health
and the failure One COVID-19 (AHW) criticized the worker allowance,
to release Allowance (OCA), a decision of the discontinues SRA.
benefits program that aims to Department of (2022, January 22).
negatively provide more Health, calling it RAPPLER.
influence comprehensive pay for “discriminatory” and https://www.rappler
nurses and healthcare personnel “divisive”. They .com/nation/doh-
healthcare who are on duty during believe that it is an launches-more-
workers’ the COVID-19 insult to all health inclusive-health-
willingness to pandemic. The active care employees as it worker-allowance-
work. hazard duty pay and downplays the value discontinues-sra/
special risk allowance of the contributions Health workers eye mass
will be phased out but and sacrifices made protest over
the OCA will be by health-care unreleased benefits.
allocated fairly to health workers. Moreover, (2021, August 16).
 every contribution of
care personnel based on health professionals
their risk level rating. should be valued
The three categories of rather than justified
risk identified are high, by the level of risk
RAPPLER.
moderate, and low risk. they encounter. In
https://www.rappler
In line with this, nurses relation to the risk
.com/nation/health-
working in high-risk levels of the OCA, it
workers-eye-mass-
areas and with patients could discourage the
protest-unreleased-
will receive a monthly nurses in continuing
benefits/
salary of 9, 000 pesos, their jobs as their
for intermediate risk is efforts are constantly
6,000 pesos, and for low being disregarded and
risk, it is 3,000 pesos. their values are
unequally quantified.

Nurses and The Organization for A contributory factor BAYANIHAN 2 ENSURES

healthcare Economic Co-operation influencing workers’ CONTINUOUS
workers must and Development decision to stay or AND IMPROVED
receive better (OECD) reported in leave their HEALTHCARE
work pay to 2017 that Western employment is the SYSTEM |
encourage them countries can pay nurses availability of better Department of
in staying at up to 5 million pesos per chances, such as Health website.
their year which is outstanding job offers (2020).
employment in significantly higher than and other substantial Doh.gov.ph.
the Philippines the Philippines' starting advantages including https://doh.gov.ph/d
rather than annual income for better salaries. oh-press-release/B
venturing for nurses. Another reason However, the pay that AYANIHAN-2-
better for the low Filipino nurses ENSURES-
opportunities in compensation is that the receive from their CONTINUOUS-
other countries. Department of Budget jobs may be AND-IMPROVED-
and Management is considered HEALTHCARE-
unable to promptly insufficient, as other SYSTEM
approve the basic salary countries can offer a
rise for government more reasonable
Low pay, high risk: The
nurses that Congress and wage, which has
reality of nurses in
the Supreme Court had become their
the Philippines.
mandated. According to benchmark. The
the law, the minimum nature of health
base compensation for workers’ jobs is such
nurses working in that they are put at
government hospitals risk of contracting
and health facilities shall any disease,
begin at salary grade 15. including the deadly
According to Romero, COVID-19. Thus, (2020, May 6).
nurses and healthcare giving them RAPPLER.
workers deserve a raise reasonable amount of https://www.rappler
during the pandemic as salary is like showing .com/newsbreak/iq/
they safeguard fairness and 259610-salary-
individuals from the appreciation to the nurses-philippines/
infection. However, with services that they
greater pay in other have provide.
countrsies, many people Nevertheless, if low
are choosing to emigrate salary continues, the
in search of a better life, migration of Filipino
according to Michael nurses to other
Bueza/Rappler.com countries will also
research. persist, and it would
be a great expense for
the Philippines.