THE TEACHERS’ Dignity Coalition appealed to the government to provide financial and comprehensive medical assistance to employees of the Department of Education who still report to work.

“Should Covid19 befall a teacher, the need for his/her colleagues to assist out of their own pock-ets must be made a thing of the past, not because of teachers’ unwillingness to help, because they very much are willing, but because of the financial incapacity they themselves are experi-encing,” the group’s national chairman Benjo Basas said.

“It is incumbent upon the national government to provide comprehensive support to DepEd em-ployees struck by Covid19, from initial swab test, to the full course of treatment and to final veri-ficatory swab test,” Basas added.

He said public schools should be provided protective equipment, disinfection materials and sani-tation facilities.

School and division officials who violate DepEd’s rules by compelling their people to report de-spite the work from home policy should be held responsible, he added.

“The teacher’s task is to teach. Why, then, must they be compelled to report to school where there are no students to teach? Why, in the first place, craft processes that cannot be done remotely, and in the process, create contradictions in policies, and worse, put teachers’ lives in danger?” Basas said.

He also called for a paid sick leave mechanism for employees who would contract Covid19.

“Requisite to this, the DOH [Department of Health] must first declare employees who are official-ly required to physically report to their workplace as ‘front liners’ with the corresponding rights, privileges and benefits afforded the said function/ assignment,” Basas added.