Dear Ivony,
You'd been there before but you still
didn't learn anything. Ano'ng napala mo? Wala, 'di ba? Buti nga sa'yo! :P
You have been teaching on-line for
Koreans for more than six years, and I assume that you already knew
the rules.
You were born in the Philippines and
sad to say, you have never visited other countries. You were not
raised abroad so you knew that every year, you need to brace yourself
against inclement weather.
From 2007, you have considered yourself
an unnamed member of the Avengers,an invisible member of Justice
League, or a wandering Marvel Superhero by going to work amidst heavy
rain; by walking and taking a ride along EDSA for a few minutes just
to get to work safely and on time. There were times that you had to
force yourself to call your students and conduct classes on the phone
while some of your countrymen were busy relocating to safer places.
In spite of this, your effort was rarely appreciated and sad to say,
those students of yours who were miles away were the ones who were
worried about your situation.
Did you still remember the times when
you had to walk along EDSA for ten minutes? Although you were aware
of the dangers that you might encounter, you'd still choose not to
take a pedicab,a taxi or a jeepney because you were too stingy; you
didn't want to waste money since the office was just several minutes
away. Did you still remember how you and your co-workers continue
conducting classes until there was no phone line anymore? Wasn't it
good to remember the day you arrived at 4:45 AM, only to find out that
there was a power failure along EDSA Magallanes and having nothing to
do, you'd just talked to your co-workers and signed out at nine AM,
walked home and went back to the office at 1:45 PM, but the situation
was still on-going? The managers and team leaders decided to call it
a day at 7 PM although the electric supply had been back. It was fun.
It was worth the risk.
Before I forget, did you remember how
Malibay had been submerged into water courtesy of Typhoon Ondoy? Boss
John was so nice. Although you were not a flood victim in its real
definition because the room you had rented was fortunately on the
second floor and the water just stayed on the ground floor of the
entire house (unlucky board mates you had), he still gave you
financial assistance. Sad to say, the company that provided you the
comfort and convenience (putting other issues aside) met its end.
When the previous company you had
worked with stopped operating, you had an option to teach; remember,
you're a BSED graduate and you passed the Licensure Examination for
Teachers. There were some schools that sent you interview
applications and there were some friends of yours who advised you to
go back to the field where you truly belong. Also, you had some
former colleagues who were able to juggle classroom and on-line
teaching, and they kept encouraging you many times to try your luck
in public schools; some of them even offered help. But no, due to
your stubborn nature, you chose to stick with the job that gave you a
not-so-luxurious life that you had ever wanted. A job that required
to to simplify all things; a job that had put your patience in
dealing with your students and superiors. A job you once called a
dead-end job, but there you go again. For some personal reasons, you
chose to try your luck again in some companies wherein the nature of
job is quite similar to your former one.
Last Monday, DepEd announced the
cancellation of classes. Work in other companies were suspended as
well. In spite PAGASA's warning, you still went to work because of
perfect attendance incentive and after hours of continuous rainfall,
you were thinking of how to go home safely. Some of you even prayed
for power outage because that might be the last straw that might
force your boss to send you home. But no, luck was not on your side
and you stayed until one forty-five PM.
Came Tuesday, you bid goodbye to your
perfect attendance incentive because the streets had been flooded
since two AM and the major roads were impassable anymore. Your
co-workers who were still able to go to work called themselves
“immortals” and had not been the creek beside your apartment
overflown, I was sure you would be one of those who received a
doughnut and a cup of hot choco worth five pesos from the coffee
vendo.
Look at your pitiful situation. While
your husband and your other friends were staying at home, you were
sharing the same sentiments with your co-workers. You see, the
students already received message, that typhoon had been continuously
unleashing its wrath and the teachers might not able to call them.
They were confused. Most of them asked you how you managed to go to
work. Some of them didn't expect your call anymore, so they were
unprepared for the lesson. While some of them were aware of what was
happening in your country, there were some who were not, or they
were, they just did not know the right words to tell you. You were
more saddened when you heard the news, that last Tuesday, teachers
who work in the afternoon shift were allowed to go home as early as
eight PM. You were now wondering why they were given a more favorable
consideration than your shift. I mean, which is more dangerous; going
to work as early as three AM or earlier to avoid being late, or going
home as late as 11 PM? What difference could it make when they were
allowed to work three hours shorter while AM teachers needed to work
their entire shift? I know that missed classes would mean loss on the
company's part , but no matter how hard I tried, I still couldn't
figure out why. If they were able to shorten the shift in the
afternoon, why were they not able to do the same in the morning? If
they were able to sacrifice three hours in the afternoon, why
wouldn't they do the same to be fair enough?
You know the answer, Ivony. Of course,
if they do, that will be too much loss. On the other hand, the
management knew that you and your coworkers aim for three thousand
pesos. Three thousand is three thousand. Sa'n mo pupulutin yun?
Teachers in the morning shift will surely risk themselves just to get
it. Kesehodang madapa, mabangga, madisgrasya, magpapakabayani. In
addition, there are employees who are still ineligible to avail
incentive leaves and sick leaves and there were some people (like
you) who had already consumed all leaves and absences. Imagine, if
you don't report to work, you'll get deductions, your incentives
forfeited plus, you will be given a memo. Again, three thousand is
three thousand. Remember, the company just gave you Fortune Care
health card worth 50K MBL, so okay lang na magkasakit ka. With three
thousand pesos taxable incentive, pampakape rin 'yun ng asawa mo in
case na mamatay ka. Oh sorry, ang morbid naman; pambili mo ng gamot
pag nadisgrasya ka. O di ba? Oh by the way, please say thanks to your
boss for giving you five pesos and a piece of bread instead of giving
you a chance to go home early. Mabuti na 'yan kesa wala, di ba? Sayang, hindi ka nakapasok nung Tuesday, wala kang doughnut and coffee for free! Thank your boss for waiting for the decision of the board abroad rather than pleading them on your behalf since she and some of her assistants are in the Philippines.
So,ano'ng pinoproblema mo? You
have a job, while others don't. You and your husband said months ago,
if you remember, that this is way better than teaching in private
schools with heavier workload, with lower (or same) salary bracket.
You were planning to take refresher course to be qualified to teach
in public schools where classes are suspended when typhoon comes yet
you're still being paid. You're even planning to find another job
next year. After that, what's next? Will you apply in call centers?
Your hubby will not allow you, I'm sure. Find a job in government
agencies? It's difficult although you passed the Career Service Exam
long ago. Find another on-line teaching company where this incident
might happen again? Work from home? Let's see. Teach in a real-school
setting. Maybe.
It's your fault. You're not a victim
here. You are a willing participant. Umulit ka pa e. They didn't ask
you to apply in their company; it was your own will. It's the
consequence of your choice, so don't complain. Sabi nga eh, MAGDUSA
KA.
I'm done reprimanding myself.
