The government, during the pandemic, relied heavily on so-called job order (JO) or contractual nurses who are healthcare workers hired by government hospitals and agencies on a contractual basis.
Braving the onslaught of the virus, the nurses pressed on despite the low pay, which was often delayed for months on end.
Unlike regular plantilla (permanent) employees, JO nurses do not receive standard employment benefits such as paid leave, job security, retirement benefits, or health insurance.
Many JO nurses work under local government units (LGUs) or public hospitals, filling the gaps in the healthcare workforce due to staff shortages.
However, their precarious employment status has been a major issue, with calls for better compensation and regularization to permanent positions.
They are usually paid on a daily or monthly basis, depending on the contract, and their employment may be terminated at any time.
Their ordeal is further worsened by the burdensome paperwork requirements imposed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) during the tenure of Commissioner Kim Henares. These requirements were supposedly intended to target doctors and other highly paid medical professionals who failed to remit their taxes.
The directive was poorly conceived as it encompassed the whole health worker industry, including the lowly compensated nurses.
In an interview on DAILY TRIBUNE’s weekly program Straight Talk, Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said the situation of JO employees in government, in terms of tax requirements, is now being looked into since their situation involves several agencies.
Among the ridiculous requirements imposed on JO nurses in public hospitals include having to register a business name and complying with a monthly filing for a 13-percent percentage tax and 10-percent withholding tax.
Struggling JO nurses blame the BIR order issued by Henares, which lumped them with doctors as healthcare providers.
BIR regulations state that nurses working in public health facilities under a JO or contract of service are considered independent contractors, not regular government employees. As a result, they have specific tax obligations.
Nurses under a job order are required to register as self-employed professionals. During the registration process, they must submit a copy of their service contract.
The BIR regulations are meant to ensure that all professionals, including job order nurses, pay the correct taxes.
These nurses have to spend time to understand their tax obligations and even seek guidance from tax professionals at their expense or face penalties.
The nurses, who are mostly new graduates, lack the time and money to handle the complex tax requirements. They work 12-hour shifts and are usually exhausted, and they are unable to comply, leading to accumulated penalties that they can no longer afford to pay.
Thus, most nurses produced by the best universities often aim to work abroad for better opportunities.
Can you blame them? These young workers sacrifice their lives, only to end up burdened with huge debts — an epic form of oppression unmatched in this modern age.
