TABUK CITY, Kalinga — The City Environment and Natural Resources Office recently reiterated their commitment to fully equip all garbage collectors with personal protective equipment (PPE) to ensure their safety while handling and collecting household waste.
With the theme “Elevating Service and Safety in Waste Management: Empowering Collectors and Drivers for a Cleaner Tomorrow,” Assistant CENRO George Andres Padalla during a training emphasized the importance of protective gear in safeguarding workers against any health risk they face daily while on duty.
Padalla highlighted that garbage collection is a hazardous job, since workers are exposed to pathogens from various types of waste. To mitigate these risks, collectors must wear dust masks, safety coveralls, safety footwear, eye protection, gloves, and hand sanitizers, among others to protect themselves.
While CENRO continually supplies the necessary protective items, Padalla said that some workers choose not to use them for personal reasons. With this, officials from the office reiterated that the safety and well-being of environmental frontliners must be prioritized, given their vital role in maintaining community sanitation.
Currently, CENRO has 48 garbage collectors and drivers, from which 13 are regular employees, and 35 were hired as job order workers. By Darwin Serion
