Palace urges health workers to gain experience in Philippines amid calls to lift deployment ban

Malacañang has asked healthcare workers to apply for positions under the government’s emergency hiring program amid the COVID-19 crisis despite calls to allow them to seek better opportunities abroad.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque suggested to health workers to first gain clinical experience in the Philippines after the Department of Health announced that the country needs an additional 3,000 healthcare workers for COVID-19 response.

“Sa tingin ko po, kapag kayo po ay nag-apply dito sa emergency recruitment ng ating gobyerno at nagtrabaho po habang may COVID, naku, pag-aagawan po kayo lalo kapag natapos na itong pandemic na ito dahil with your clinical experience at the time of COVID, you will become po the subject of head hunters,” Roque told reporters on Monday.

“Kaunting tiyaga lang po but take advantage of the opportunity na rin po to prove your worth in the Philippines as clinical nurses.”

Roque, in a separate statement on Tuesday, lauded the healthcare workers “for their dedicated and compassionate service in our battle against COVID-19.”

“And by equipping/acquiring themselves with the skills and competence their profession entails, they have not only helped our people during this time of global health emergency crisis, but they, too, would have been provided the work experience that would open doors for opportunities for overseas employment,” he said.

He also said the healthcare workers are modern-day heroes who have “responded to the call of duty during these challenging times.”

Last week, the Philippines’ COVID-19 task force maintained that healthcare employees who have government-issued overseas employment certificates (OEC) and verified work contracts as of March 8, 2020 were exempted from the temporary deployment ban on medical and allied health workers.

Also exempted from the ban are vacationing health workers who have existing job contracts abroad. — Virgil Lopez/RSJ, GMA News