DOLE allots P100 million for COVID-19 testing of newly-hired workers

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Friday said newly-hired individuals who need to secure a negative RT-PCR test result as pre-employment requirement can avail of a one-time free COVID-19 testing.

“The Department has allocated P100 million for this program. Through this, we intend to ease the burden of additional COVID-19 cost among newly-hired jobseekers in the private sector, agency-hired overseas workers set for deployment, and even newly-appointed employees in any branch or instrumentality of the government,” Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said

The said program is covered by the DOLE Department Order 232, series of 2022 signed by Bello.

The program covers jobseekers hired after the effectivity of the Department order and jobseekers employed beginning February 1, 2022 who are yet to assume position due to lack of negative RT-PCR test result, according to the DOLE.

To avail of the COVID-19 test subsidy, the Labor department said the new hires must submit photocopy of a valid government-issued ID and duly accomplished subsidy application form to the nearest DOLE field office.

It added that newly-hired jobseekers must also submit a certificate of engagement, acceptance, or appointment duly signed by the establishment owner, general manager, or human resource manager for those hired in private domestic establishments and by recruitment agencies deploying workers overseas; or head of the agency or head of the human resource office for those hired in any government branch or instrumentality.

The concerned DOLE field office shall evaluate the application within three working days from receipt and endorse the pre-evaluated applications to the concerned regional office, the Labor department said.

The DOLE regional office shall then notify the applicant within five working days whether the application is approved or denied through electronic mail/SMS, it added.

If approved, the DOLE said an electronic mail shall include the information that the beneficiary shall present to the testing center, such as reference number and date, time, and place of testing.

To ensure program monitoring, the DOLE regional offices are tasked to submit weekly monitoring reports to the Bureau of Local Employment, the Labor department said.—LDF, GMA News