Councilor amends BHW criteria for termination

The Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) will be able serve longer years now after City Councilor Mary Joselle Villafuerte pushed a resolution that will amend the criteria for termination of volunteer health workers enacted by the City Health Office (CHO) in 2007.

Villafuerte who chairs the committee on health passed the said resolution under suspended rules yesterday at the regular session that mandates to remove a criteria for termination of BHW with the basis on their age.

“It has come to my attention that our BHWs upon reaching the age of 60, they are removed,” she said.

Based on the said criteria, BHWs shall be terminated upon reaching age 60.

According to Villafuerte, the BHWs brought the request to them requesting to amend the said criterion.

“Why don’t we make them equal with the government worker or any worker because 60 is just an optional age of retirement for them. The mandatory age is 65,” she said.

Villafuerte said she could not find any basis of the CHO that backs the said provision in the criteria.

“I tried to do my research but I could not remember any ordinance allowing the CHO to forcibly retire the person once they reach the age of 60,” she said.

In her resolution, Villafuerte mentioned Section 5a(6) of R.A. 10911 otherwise known as An Act Prohibiting Discrimination Against any Individual in Employment on Account of Age.

“Why not give this to our BHWs? They deserve the same amount of respect and opportunities that is given to us. They are not asking for anything special, they just want to experience the equal opportunity that others enjoy,” she said.

“I have two employees who are former BHW presidents in Marilog and Calinan who were terminated when they were 60. They are still very active. They have been able to do similar works in the Barangay that is similar to their duties as BHW before,” Villafuerte said.

She also noted that the city even lacks BHW and removing them early when they can still serve for five years adds to the problem.