A job of
a seafarer is not exactly a walk in the park. One with a heart condition is “a walking time bomb ready
to explode towards the end of his employment days.”
Cardiovascular
disease (CVD) is a term to describe conditions of the heart and blood vessels
and is the leading cause of death in the country today according to the
Department of Health.
Common
CVDs include, among others, coronary heart diseases/ischemic heart disease,
cerebrovascular accident or stroke, and hypertension or elevated blood
pressure.
Under
Section 32-A(11) of the 2010 POEA Amended Standard Terms and Conditions. CVD is considered an occupational disease for
which a seafarer may claim compensation if it was contracted under working
conditions identified therein as follows:
when the heart disease was aggravated by reasons of the nature of the
seafarer’s work, the severity of the strain of the work may be sufficient and
followed within 24 hours by clinical signs of cardiac insult, and signs and
symptoms of cardiac injury appeared during his work and the same persisted.
In
several cases, cardiovascular disease, coronary artery disease, as well as
other heart ailments were held to be compensable as total permanent disability
by the Supreme Court.
Seafarers working for
companies for long period of time is
normally saddled with heavy responsibilities relative to navigation of the
vessel, ship safety and management of emergencies. (Magsaysay Mitsui OSK
Marine, Inc.. vs. Juanito Bengson; G.R. No. 198528, October 13, 2014)
It is beyond doubt that seafarer can be subjected
to physical and mental stress and strain; these responsibilities cause heavy
burdens on one’s shoulders all these years, and certainly contributed to the
development of his illness. Besides, it is already recognized that any kind of
work or labor produces stress and strain normally resulting in wear and tear of
the human body.
Notably, it is a matter of
judicial notice that an overseas worker, having to ward off homesickness by
reason of being physically separated from his family for the entire duration of
his contract, bears a great degree of emotional strain while making an effort
to perform his work well. The strain is even greater in the case of a seafarer who is constantly subjected to the perils of
the sea while at work abroad and away from his family.
Having worked for the company under several
employment contracts that were continuously renewed, it can be said that a
seafarer spent much of his productive years with the company; his years of
service certainly took a toll on his body, and he could not have contracted his
illness elsewhere except while working for the company.
The
case of Carlos N. Nisda vs. Sea Serve Maritime Agency, et. al. (G.R. No.
179177, July 23, 2009) made it clear that by showing the reasonable connection
between the seafarer’s work and the
development and exacerbation of his CVD, a seafarer may claim for payment of
disability benefits under the POEA SEC. The physical discomforts for which he
sought medical attention when he was abroad bear the hallmarks of coronary artery disease
that did not develop overnight hence, making it highly possible that he had the
disease while he was still onboard during the life of his POEA-SEC, although it
went undiagnosed because he had yet to experience the symptoms.
The
fact that he was deployed by his employers numerous times, which job was found
to be arduous and grueling, showed the reasonable connection between the nature
of his job and his heart disease.
Accordingly, he was able to prove that disease was work-related given
the difficult nature of his job that
caused his disease or at least, aggravated any pre-existing conditions that he
might have had.
Considering
the repulsive physical manifestation of the disease, it's chronic nature, lack
of long-term cure and the vulnerability of the patient to cardiovascular
diseases, a seafarer would no longer be
able to perform strenuous activities such as the rigorous duties of a seafarer.
Companies
definitely will no longer hire a seafarer due to his medical condition, especially the
high risk of having heart failure or stoke in the future. From the business
point of view, it will be risky for them to let him be re-employed since the
harsh working environment might only aggravate the seafarer’s fragile condition and in the end
expose the company to more serious insurance liabilities.
The
Supreme Court described an employee with a heart condition as “a walking time bomb ready
to explode towards the end of his employment days.” (GSIS vs. Alcaraz, GR. 187474, February 6, 2013) To be sure, the risks present in his work
environment for the entire duration of his employment might precipitate a graver
heart condition.
A job of
a seafarer is not exactly a walk in the park.
He performs duties and responsibilities as instructed or as necessary. (Heirs of the Late R/O Reynaldo Aniban vs. NLRC, 282 SCRA 377)
What makes the job more difficult, aside from
exposure to fluctuating temperatures caused by variant weather changes, the job
obviously entails laborious manual tasks conducted in a moving ship, which
makes for increased work-related stress. All these factors may exacerbate
private respondent’s heart condition. Prolonged and continued exposure to the same
could probably risk him to another attack (Oriental Shipmgt. Co., Inc. vs. Bastol (G.R. 168269 January
29, 2010.)
