Salary Increase for Philippine Government Employees

Posted by Breaking News on April 9th, 2012 in World News

Government employees will receive their second tranche of salary increase under the latest salary standardization law a week earlier as compared to last year.

This was disclosed yesterday by Budget and Management Secretary Joaquin C. Lagonera who said that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has just signed Executive Order No. 900, giving the go-signal to implement the second tranche of the modified salary schedule under Senate and House of Representatives Joint Resolution No. 4, s. 2009 commonly known as Salary Standardization Law (SSL) III, effective June 24, 2010.

The Joint Resolution provides that the modified salary schedule under SSL III shall be implemented in four equal yearly tranches, but in no case beyond four years. The first tranche of the salary increase for National Government Agencies (NGAs), Government Owned or Controlled Corporations (GOCCs), and Government Financial Institutions (GFIs) was implemented effective July 1, 2009.

“Some P23.9 billion is allocated under the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund in the FY 2010 General Appropriations Act to cover the implementation of the 2nd tranche of the modified salary schedule for employees of national government agencies and the base pay schedule for military and uniformed personnel,” Lagonera said.

The budget chief also assured government workers that the corresponding cash requirement for their salary increase will be released as part of the cash program for the second half of the year.

“In accordance with existing fund release procedures, the funding requirement for this second phase of salary increase of government workers will be included in the July-December cash program,” Lagonera said.

The SSL III, approved in June 2009, is a four-year plan to rationalize public sector pay through adjustments in the 33-grade government pay scale. While all employees will benefit from the pay raise, higher rates of increase are given to certain professionals like teachers, nurses, doctors, lawyers and accountants who would enjoy some 54% to 77% increase in their salaries with the full implementation of the law. Aside from increasing salaries, these positions were upgraded in recognition of their importance in society in the case of teachers and medical personnel, and their market demand in case of lawyers and accountants.

According to Lagonera, “the second tranche of the monthly salary schedule would provide a 10.2% monthly increase in the current salaries of incumbents of positions of Teacher I, SG-11, who comprise the bulk of civilian personnel in NGAs, from P14,198 in July 2009 to P15,649 under the second tranche implementation this year.”

He also said that a soldier with the rank of Private in the Department of National Defense or a Police Officer I in the Philippine National Police would be entitled to a monthly increase of P1,342 over their current base pay; while a Nurse I would receive a P1,451 monthly salary increase.

With the second tranche implementation of the SSL III, the minimum pay in the national government would be increased by P713 a month or P32.40 per day.

The budget chief explained that workers in local government and state-owned firms, although covered by SSL III, will have to get funding for their salary adjustments from their respective agencies. Since LGUs have only implemented the first tranche of SSL this year, the second tranche for LGU personnel may be made effective not earlier than January 1, 2011, as may be determined by the sanggunian concerned.

In accordance with Constitutional provisions, the incumbent President and Vice-President of the Philippines, members of Congress including senators whose full term will expire in 2013 shall not be entitled to the rates of the second tranche.

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