For those who thought no one but the big guy worked on Christmas Eve, you’ve got another thing coming. From radio disc jockeys to message handlers, from firemen to 7-11 cashiers, a multitude of Santa Clauses-in-the-rough plod their way to work on the night of traditional Filipino noche buena, be it their choice or not. Read on and learn about the perks and letdowns of working the holiday graveyard shift.
They have the rare privilege of being able to greet thousands of listeners at once with single salutation. They also get to choose the songs people all around the metropolis would be singing to for a full four hours (regular deejay shift). Anyone would think they have the dream job. But spending Christmas cooped up in a radio booth is definitely no fun. Let Jake dela Peña, deejay for 96.3 DWRK, tell you.
“I cried last Christmas Eve… I was working for the provincial station then and my family was in Manila. It felt so lonely going home to an empty apartment,” she relates of her experience working during Christmas Eve.
Asked what she would have been doing had she not had to report to work, she answers, “Cooking (for my family). We usually eat our noche buena at our house and rush over to my lola’s. We make sure we get home by 11 p.m. so we could attend midnight mass together.”
But for all the aggravation manning the shift may be, there are also discernible payoffs. “We don’t get extra pay (for working on Christmas Eve)… There’s a sense of fulfillment in being able to make people happy just by greeting them over the radio and in knowing that someone would be jump with excitement because you played a song for him.”
***
Anyone who has experienced sending a message through the pager during peak hours (that is, from 6 to 9 p.m.) would know the agony that is listening to a beeping signal ringing in your ear. But did you ever consider how hard it must be to transcribe all those soppy love messages and mushy greetings? What more if these were Christmas greetings on a Christmas Eve spent working?
“It’s really hard to concentrate on your job when your mind’s on your family,” says Ruby, a message handler for a popular paging company, of the hardships of forgoing the holiday celebration just to show up for work.
Are they given the option not to work? “You could choose to go on leave but that’s on a first come, first served basis… Anyway, incentives are given to those who work; we get triple pay and night differential (extra payment given for those late working hours).”
“You think of (the job) as a sacrifice… My family and I have learned to accept that.”
But how is working during Christmas Eve different from ordinary nights? “The lines could get really clogged. We call that situation “toxic” status (condition of having a lot of call-waiting). In a way, that (having a lot of calls) makes working on Christmas Eve almost tolerable… You hardly have any free time to feel lonely,” Ruby ends.
***
“Call of duty” is how Bayani Ponson rationalizes working on Christmas Eve.
“It is our duty to serve, Christmas or not,” says Mang Bayani, a fireman of 20 years at the Hulong Duhat Fire Substation in Malabon. “Of course, you’d rather be home to spend it (Christmas Eve) with your family, but even then, you wander to your job.”
Mang Larry, on the other hand, says it is an absolute necessity that they work at that time.
“The number of drunken brawls escalate during that time. Especially in our area (Fairview, Quezon City) where a lot of squatters live, we need to be around to keep the peace,” he tells us.
And, he tells us, knowing that you’re doing something important almost compensates for the loneliness of being away from your family. “you think of it as a sacrifice. I chose this profession and this is really a part of it. My family and I have learned to accept that.”
***
No inconvenience. This is what Mark, a 28-year-old cashier of 7-11, says of working on the eve of December 24.
“Maybe it’s because I have no family and my parents are in Negros. I don’t think it is very much different from any other working day,” he replies.
Doesn’t he miss his parents at all? “Not really, I’ve been away from them since I was 17. It’s just a matter of getting used to being on your own.”
But what if he already has a family? Would he still choose to work the shift?
“No,” he claims, “I’d choose to stay home (whether) double pay or not.”
Time spent with the family has no equivalent monetary value. Therefore, for all the aforementioned individuals, giving up the opportunity to spend time with their family is a sacrifice that is one-half dedication and one-half service. For sure this sacrifice makes a more joyous Christmas celebration, whether it be by keeping constant watch over our safety, by playing joyful carols, or by ensuring a ready source of foodstuff. If only we appreciated their efforts as much as we did the jolly old guy when we were kids.
