In a show of unity amid trying times, A-People are rallying to support utility personnel and service staff from Aboitiz NAC Tower and Ore Central offices whose livelihood is affected by the enhanced community quarantine currently in place to curb the spread of COVID-19. As of March 25, a total of PHP854,930 has already been raised from 265 contributions.

A UnionBank account has been set up to which all donations are routed via online fund transfer* facility. The pooled funds will be extended to 71 housekeeping personnel and security guards at NAC Tower and Ore Central Building, all of whom are under third-party agencies and have a ‘no work, no pay’ arrangement. Minimum wage employees are expected to receive an amount contingent on their one month base rate while supervisors and technicians are set to receive a slightly higher amount. Their agencies will assist in distributing the monetary contributions.

Notably, even before the call for support, some teams already had pass-the-hat initiatives and sent funds directly to their utility personnel. When the official call went out on March 18, team members promptly responded and pledged PHP283,300 in cash donations within the first hour alone, living out the company’s core values of teamwork and responsibility. Truly, #OneAboitiz means making sure no one gets left behind amidst the COVID-19 crisis.

Our company will help. We want it to be a joint effort. Depending on how much funds we can get from the teams. We want to show that this is from all of us — the company and its A-people.

– Sabin Aboitiz, President and CEO, Aboitiz Group

With the understanding of the critical importance of financial security, the Aboitiz Group set aside PHP900 million to cover the early release of the end-March salary as well as 13th- or 14th-month pay for over 11,000 team members.

The government's Enhanced Community Quarantine from March 17 to April 13, 2020 suspends classes and all school activities, prohibits mass gatherings, calls for strict home quarantine and work from home arrangements, limits travel by air, sea, and land, and suspends mass public transport facilities among other measures to stem the number of cases and limit transmission risk.

* Instapay transfer fees are waived for the duration of the Enhanced Community Quarantine.