What We Can Learn About Workplace Safety from Eddie Garcia's Death

Image from Pep.ph 

Eddie Garcia passed away last June 20, two weeks after suffering a preventable workplace accident that injured his cervical spine. He then fell into a coma and never woke up. His family decided not to resuscitate him. He was 90 years old. 

Initial reports had him "collapsing" on set while shooting an action scene for a forthcoming GMA teleserye in Tondo. Later there was a statement allegedly from his family that said he suffered from a heart attack. 

Then video shot by bystanders revealed that he appeared to trip on cable wire, tried to rebalance himself and fell. His family and doctors corroborated this statement: there was no heart attack. He tripped on some cable wire and fell. 

The people on set seemed unprepared for something like this happening. There was no medical crew on standby. It took some time to bring him to the nearest hospital because they had to call a cab. (Where were the service vans?) The people who helped carry Eddie Garcia were most likely sincere in wanting to help, but being untrained in how to handle neck fracture victims, probably made his condition worse. 

GMA promised to review the video. They asked for prayers for Manoy Eddie. Then they've been eeriely quiet since. 

It's been two weeks and the actor with a 70 year career, who was in the pink of health and would have probably continued working for a few more years, is now gone. By all accounts, he's a very nice guy. Always professional, arrived early on set before anyone else, sharp memory. 

I suppose it's at this point that I should mention that I worked with him sometime back. He would have comments and suggestions for possible trajectories for the character he's playing, but never demanded anything. The last call was still with the creative pool. In his projects, he never forgot to thank everyone--even creatives, who are not usually on set. We did set visits, and I regret that I don't have a picture with him though. 

People are mourning. A common refrain heard over and over again is that no one is to blame for this "accident." Judy Ann Santos, who never got to work with Manoy Eddie, expressed regret at this preventable workplace accident. Here's what she posted in her Instagram account: 

"sana sa nangyaring to, maging bukas ang isip ng mga networks sa tamang pag aalaga, pagbigay ng sapat na kaalaman sa lahat ng taga production artista man o hindi, pagdating sa mga ganitong sitwasyon..maaring naiwasan sana .." 

The Inquirer asks why there was no medical crew on standby. GMA replied: “It has been the Network’s practice to have medical personnel and ambulance crew on standby whenever the production is executing big action scenes during taping." But there was none that day. Should we assume that it was *not* a big scene that therefore required an ambulance? 

This isn't just for veteran actors or big stars. On the project we worked on, there were several senior actors in the cast, including his Ang Probinsyano co-star Susan Roces. The usual protocol is for these senior actors to have an earlier cut off time. Midnight and even earlier, they're gone. You shoot their scenes first. On the other hand, I can't quite remember if it's required to have an ambulance on standby. But we got through that show with no untoward accidents. In hindsight, we were lucky. 

But the point is to be ready for emergencies. 

Another possible safety protocol would be to not let the senior actors do anything physically straining. People pointed out that Eddie Garcia was in Ang Probinsyano for quite some time, and most of his scenes had him acting his scenes while sitting down in a room. Safe. 

The Director's Guild of the Philippines issued a statement: Garcia’s death “is a sad and urgent reminder to the film and television industries that safety protocols at work and on set are of paramount importance.” 

At his wake, actor Rez Cortez called for better working conditions for film workers. Cortez mentioned that Garcia's advocacy was to have a safe place of work. Cortez further says: “Sana magkaroon na ng ng safety officers sa set, mayroong mga medical team, may ambulance, may insurance, at among others, sana maregulate na ang working conditions ng mga taga-pelikula at telebisyon.”

Yeah, imagine if we do. 

Cultural worker and activist Katrina Stuart-Santiago, on the news that EVA Air attendants hold a strike that halted thousands of flights in Taiwan, asks us to imagine what could happen if "EVERYONE who worked for television went on strike and demanded accountability for the death of #EddieGarcia, and pushed for better, safer workplaces for ALL TV workers? #Imagine!"

These are standard for other industries. But the entertainment and news media still has a long way to go. This is specially true for television workers, where production staff work for 24 hours straight. You pull out from the station at 4AM and if you're lucky, shoot is done before or by morning. If you're really unlucky, you will still be on set in the afternoon, shooting material that will be aired later that night. 

If this could happen to a stalwart of the Philippine entertainment industry, what more the little people: the lighting crew, the guys who make your coffee--or even the crew whose task it was to lay down the electrical wires needed on set? Surely, those who did those tasks on that Tondo set feel guilty. They could have been more careful, but they aren't to blame. It's a systemic malaise of an industry that asks so much from its workers but could not and would not do much to ensure their safety or even recognize their status as real employees. 

This is one of the reasons why I decided to shift careers. I wasn't that young anymore to be doing meetings that lasted over 12 hours and sometimes continued until 1AM, then have something deliverable the next day. It was becoming difficult to go on location and be on the set for more than 24 hours. That year, several people died. I thought it was a sign. It was time to go. 

As for Manong Eddie, one way of looking at this is that at age 90, he lived a full life and enjoyed a career and passed away doing something he clearly loved. It's not ideal, this passing. So long, sir, and thanks for all the memories.