Updated: The Return-To-Work Checklist for Philippine Companies (16 May 2020)

May 15, 2020

With the National Capital Region (NCR) -- which includes Manila, Makati, Taguig, Pasig, Quezon City, and surrounding cities -- entering a "modified enhanced community quarantine" phase (from May 16, 2020 to May 31, 2020), and other regions being placed under a less restrictive general community quarantine, Philippine businesses that have had to suspend operations since March 17 will now need to step up their return-to-work plan.

SyCipLaw has prepared a general checklist that may help with these preparations. This is based on, among others, government press briefings and announcements on COVID 19-related guidelines, and focuses on MECQ-relevant rules.

We have updated the checklist for Philippine Companies we released on May 15 to
reflect certain provisions of the Omnibus Guidelines on the Implementation of Community Quarantine in the Philippines (https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/downloads/2020/05may/20200515-omnibus-guidelines-on-the-implementation-of-community-quarantine-in-the-philippines.pdf) issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force of Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF). The guidelines were posted on May 16, 2020, which is after we released the checklist.

One of the updates we made is to indicate that the testing of returning employees is not mandatory. Section 8(4) of the IATF Omnibus Guidelines provides that "[c]ompliance with Joint DTI-DOLE Return-to-Work Guidelines and DOH Return-to-Work Guidelines shall be considered sufficient compliance with minimum health standards. In no case shall the testing of all returning workers be construed as a condition precedent for his/her return."

As the IATF and regulators seek to quickly respond and adapt to various needs and exigencies of affected areas, enterprises need to closely monitor the release of new guidelines and issuances.

A PDF of the Updated: The Return-To-Work Checklist can be downloaded from
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ndxb3asEPDyjzEPYmZH6g52i4ul5Vu5x/view.

The checklist was prepared by SyCipLaw partners Rose Marie M. King-Dominguez, Carina C. Laforteza, Ronald Mark C. Lleno, Hiyasmin H. Lapitan, John Christian Joy A. Regalado, and Ma. Patricia B. Paz, with the assistance of associates Bianca Danica S. Villarama, Severino Miguel B. Sanchez, and Kathleen Mae L. Nieto.