(Eagle News)–Senator Francis Pangilinan on Wednesday, July 24, said the pay of entry-level nurses in government should be raised to P30,000.
In pushing for the entry-level salary of not lower than Salary Grade 15 (SG-15) or equivalent to P30,531, Pangilinan, in Senate Bill 260, noted the low salaries Filipino nurses get despite the long working hours, a high nurse-patient ratio, and physical and mental burnout.
He said based on Department of Labor and Employment’s Bureau of Local Employment (DOLE-BLE) data, an entry-level registered nurse in the country receives a monthly salary of P8,000 to P13,500.
Nurses in government hospitals receive an average monthly salary of P13,500 while those employed in private hospitals get about P10,000, he added.
“So we have a situation of Filipinos taking care of the health of foreigners while our kababayans hardly ever see a health professional,” Pangilinan said.
SB 260 also seeks to put in place mechanisms for relevant nursing practices, just and humane working conditions, and to promote the professional growth of nurses.
“Sa huli, ang layunin ng panukalang ito ay ang mapabuti ang kalagayan ng propesyon ng nursing at ang itaguyod ang kalidad ng pangangalagang pangkalusugan para sa lahat ng mga Pilipino,” he said.
Earlier, President Rodrigo Duterte urged Congress to pass a new version of the Salary Standardization Law that would enable the increase in salaries of nurses and teachers.
