BY ADRIAN P. NEMES III
Business Process Outsourcing firm Transcom Bacolod was finally given the go signal by the Emergency Operations Center to resume operations on Monday, almost a week after their onsite work was halted due to the Covid outbreak in their facility.
Dr. Chris Sorongon, Emergency Operations Center deputy for medical and data analysis, said they already inspected the BPO firm yesterday and, so far, they noted that it is already 75 to 80 percent compliant with their recommendations.
A notice of violation was issued against Transcom for not using the city’s baCTrac system which made it difficult for the EOC to conduct contact-tracing on their personnel, after 41 of its employees tested positive for Covid.
Mark Lyndsell, the firm’s chief executive officer for Global English Region, said they were not aware that the baCTrac system was mandatory as they were under the impression that it was only voluntary.
Lyndsell said they already rectified this error and enrolled with the system and also boosted linkages with the city government to avoid further miscommunication in the future.
Sorongon confirmed that Transcom has indeed enrolled with baCTrac and is already using the system on top of the tracking system that the firm has developed.
He said the 121 employees, who will report back to duty on Monday, will be swabbed again to ensure that they are Covid-free.
Sorongon added that they will no longer collect the P1,000 fine from Transcom for not using the baCTrac system as it already corrected its errors.
At the meeting with the EOC, Transcom’s top executives announced that they already enhanced their health protocol signage and reduced the capacity of their pantry while they also reconfigured the workstations where there are now alcohol and boxes of masks. They will also install exhaust fans and air purifier by Monday.
Meanwhile, the EOC has, so far, inspected 12 BPOs in Bacolod and they noted violations in at least five of these firms.
Sorongon said there were employees who do not observe social distancing and not wearing face masks and shields.
He said the monitoring team already listed down the violations in these firms and they will consolidate and release it to the media next week. Sorongon also said that they will continue their monthly meeting with the BPO firms’ managers to ensure that they follow the city’s guidelines on Covid prevention, especially with the circular issued by EOC executive director Em Ang following the disease outbreak at Transcom.*
