Push Admin

Teachers' group rejects full return to onsite work in Alert Level 1 areas

Article (news)

Jaehwa Bernardo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Students prepare to enter their respective classrooms at the Jose Magsaysay Elementary School (JMES) in Makati City on March 30, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/news/04/11/20220330-covid-makati-school-in-person-class-gc-2902.jpg"/><figcaption>Students prepare to enter their respective classrooms at the Jose Magsaysay Elementary School (JMES) in Makati City on March 30, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA — A teachers&#x27; group is asking the Department of Education (DepEd) to rescind a new policy requiring all personnel from areas under Alert Level 1 to physically report to schools and offices.In a statement issued late Sunday, Teachers&#x27; Dignity Coalition (TDC) Chairperson Benjo Basas asked the agency to stop implementing Department Memorandum No. 29 and consult teachers on new work arrangements.&quot;We are not against physical reporting. In fact, gusto na natin ng (we want) face-to-face classes. But a 100-percent physical reporting for modular and online tasks simply defeats logic,&quot; Basas said.&quot;We urge the DepEd to immediately halt the implementation of this memorandum. Further, we ask for a wide consultation with our classroom teachers including school heads,&quot; he said.While thousands of schools across the country have reopened for limited in-person classes, students also continue to learn from their homes through distance learning methods such as printed modules and online classes.Under the memorandum dated April 6, &quot;all DepEd offices, schools and community learning centers (CLCs) are hereby directed to adhere to the 100-percent onsite reporting capacity&quot; policy that the Inter-Agency Task Force allowed under Alert Level 1.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/08/22/more-areas-placed-under-alert-1-palace">More areas under Alert Level 1 until mid-April: Palace</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/03/31/22/metro-manila-197-areas-under-covid-alert-level-1-until-april-15">Palace says Metro Manila, 197 areas under Alert Level 1 until mid-April</a></li></ul>&quot;This shall cover all teaching and nonteaching personnel, including contracts of service and job orders, in all DepEd offices, schools, and CLCs, both adopting face-to-face classes and distance learning delivery modalities,&quot; the department said.The DepEd said full onsite reporting is &quot;an opportunity to improve the implementation of multiple learning delivery modalities, through a more efficient supervision and monitoring of the proper use of learning modules and online platform.&quot;Personnel who have been infected with COVID-19 or identified as close contacts of suspect, probable and confirmed cases are not required to report to work &quot;and may avail of the excused absence or adopt a work-from-home arrangement,&quot; according to the DepEd.Basas argued that schools have &quot;properly functioning systems&quot; that full onsite reporting &quot;would only disrupt.&quot;He said transportation remained unreasonably costly in parts of the country as fuel prices continued to soar and internet connectivity in many schools &quot;is still either non-existent or intermittent.&quot;The DepEd has yet to comment on the TDC&#x27;s statement.As of April 5, only 17,524 public and private schools have begun holding limited face-to-face classes, equivalent to 30 percent of the total number of schools nationwide, according to the DepEd.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/04/06/22/dont-mix-classes-vaccinations-in-schools-briones">Don&#x27;t mix in-person classes, COVID-19 vaccination in schools: Briones</a></li></ul>Education workers are not the only ones opposing policies disallowing work-from-home now that the country has recorded fewer COVID-19 cases.Various groups earlier criticized the government&#x27;s decision to disallow remote work in the business process outsourcing industry, calling for a &quot;hybrid&quot; setup involving both onsite reporting and work-from-home.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/03/14/22/bpo-workers-hit-govt-push-for-return-to-office-in-april">&#x27;Not out of the woods&#x27;: BPO workers blast return to office in April</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/business/03/02/22/bpos-bat-for-more-permanent-hybrid-work-setup">BPO sector bats for &#x27;more permanent&#x27; hybrid work setup to stay competitive: IBPAP</a></li></ul>

A teachers' group is asking the DepEd to rescind a new policy requiring all personnel from Alert Level 1 areas to physically report to schools and offices.

Teachers' group rejects full return to onsite work in Alert Level 1 areas

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Sudoku

Word of the Day

Lotto

Horoscope

News

Teachers' group rejects full return to onsite work in Alert Level 1 areas

Jaehwa Bernardo,

ABS-CBN News

Published April 11, 2022 01:05 PM PHT

Read More:

education

Department of Education

basic education

teachers

Teachers' Dignity Coalition

return to office

onsite work

work arrangements

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.