The tens of thousands of volunteers who took part in the World Cleanup Day (WCD) last 20 September deserve praise for devoting time and energy in helping remove waste from beaches and waterways across the country. But while they have collected on a single day tens of thousands of tons of trash, preventing these from ending up in the oceans, cleanups need to be continuous with people generating garbage every day. This is how crucial professional sanitation workers as they do cleanup on a daily basis.

Everybody depends on garbage collectors. Without these people taking away household trash, homes would smell bad from kitchen waste. Uncollected biodegradable waste also can pose health risk by breeding germs-carrying flies.

There are other kinds of trash that waste workers also handle. Metropolitan  Manila Development Authority cleaners would remove old furniture, broken refrigerators, wheels, trunks of fallen trees, other big garbage and plastics clogging pumping stations, which help control flooding in the metropolis.

Plastic wastes not only threaten marine life when they end up in the oceans. Those that get caught in pumping station engines can damage the equipment if not prevent it from working.

The government is giving waste workers the recognition they deserve. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), for one, gave awards and rewards to some 2,600 estero and river rangers (ERRs) who keep creeks and rivers plastic waste-free and unclogged, even during stormy weather. They can be considered flood frontliners for clearing debris that helps floodwater quickly subside.

Awards and incentives are not enough, of course. DENR is also equipping ERRs with the necessary resources, training and institutional support to enhance their capabilities.

To be safe in performing their job, ERRs and other waste workers need proper gears such as raincoat, rubber boots, tongs, reflectorized vest, rubber gloves, mask, metral scraper, shovel, bolo, scythe, broom, sack, rake, garbage picker, crate and even a life vest.

For her part, Senator Loren Legarda has refiled in the 20th Congress a bill that seeks to improve working conditions for waste workers.

“There is an inherent risk our waste workers face when it comes to properly collecting and disposing of tons of garbage we produce every day,” Legarda said in refiling the Magna Carta of Waste Workers bill.

Under the bill, waste workers shall be provided with free annual medical examinations by their employers and be given personal protective equipment, vaccinations, and other prophylactic measures, such as tetanus shots.

They shall also be accorded access to comprehensive health services provided by a health maintenance organization, including hospitalization and regular physical, dental, mental and psychosocial check-ups to monitor, prevent and address their occupational illnesses and work-related health conditions.

The bill further stipulates that their work hours do not exceed eight hours and make them entitled to overtime and holiday pay.

“The waste management industry is an unheralded but vital aspect of our everyday lives. Our waste workers strive every day to prevent the spread of disease caused by decaying garbage,” Legarda said.

“With the passage of this bill, we are giving gratitude to those who have continued to work this noble occupation.” 

Indeed, garbage collectors, street sweepers and materials recovery staff are a vital workforce that keeps surroundings pollution-free, helps promote waste recycling and contribute to flood mitigation for the safety of the public. For doing the dirty job, they deserve the best protection, support and treatment.