The Employees’ Compensation Commission (ECC) recently granted temporary total disability (TTD) benefits due to Vocal Cord Nodules to Marie Angeline Rodriguez, a customer service representative at IBM Business Services, Inc., Quezon City
Sometime in April 2008, Rodriguez was diagnosed with Chronic Laryngitis, Vocal Cord Nodules. Her ailment was evaluated not work-connected by the Social Security System (SSS) on the ground that Vocal Cord Nodules is not included in the list of occupational diseases and the risk of developing the same was increased by her smoking habits.
In granting the claim, the ECC gave credence to a medical report which states that “vocal cord nodules are common among patients who speak professionally especially younger women. They have now been common among call center employees’ who need to speak for several hours confined in cold-air conditioned rooms.” Considering that Rodriguez’s nature of work as a call center agent entails speaking on the phone for several hours, her working conditions made her susceptible to vocal cord nodules.
The ECC granted Rodriguez EC TTD benefits for 90 days plus reimbursement of medical expenses incurred in the treatment of her Vocal Cord Nodules.