Palace: Agencies in NCR may reduce on-site staff, must maintain full operations
MANILA, Philippines — Governmenr agencies in Metro Manila will have fewer people on site during the Enhanced Community Quarantine period but will remain fully operational, Malacañang said,
Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea issued Memorandum Circular 87 authorizing heads of agencies under the Executive department in the National Capital Region to reduce on-site work capacity.
"To ensure the continuity of government service, the skeleton workforce shall not be less than 20% on-site capacity at any given time, with the remainder being under work-from-home arrangements," the memo read.
Agencies providing health and emergency frontline services, laboratory and testing services, border control and other critical services may operate at 100% on-site capacity, it added.
The Palace memo covers all agencies and instrumentalities under the Executive branch and government-owned and –controlled corporations in NCR.
But Medialdea stressed that the government will remain in full operational, subject to on-site capacity and work-from-home during the ECQ period from August 6 to 20.
The heads of affected agencies shall determine the size of the workforce that will report physically to offices. Medialdea said the agency heads shall submit, before August 6, to the department head the specific percentage of the agency’s skeleton workforce and the arrangements to ensure the continuing operation of the agency.
Metro Manila will revert to a two-week lockdown amid rising cases of COVID-19 and the threat of the more transmissible Delta variant of the coronavirus. NCR mayors have also agreed to impose a curfew from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. during this period.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo has earlier ordered the physical closure of Metro Manila courts and judicial offices from August 2 to 20, but stressed that they will continue to operate online and conduct videoconferencing hearings on urgent incidents and cases.
Health authorities on Monday reported 6,879 new coronavirus cases, bringing the national tally to 1,612,541. Of these, 63,137 are deemed active cases. — Kristine Joy Patag
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