1.145-M government employees to benefit from salary standardization law

Some 1.145-million government employees are set to benefit from the salary standardization law which proposes to increase their salaries and benefits by a total of P125.6 billion over the next four years, Senator Richard J. Gordon (Ind.) said today.

Gordon, acting chairman of the bicameral conference committee, issued the statement after the ratification of the committee report on the amendments on the modified Compensation and Position Classification System or the Salary Standardization Law III principally authored in the Senate by Sen. Edgardo Angara.

The bicameral committee was headed by Gordon for the Senate panel, with Senators Miguel Zubiri and Pia Cayetano as members; and Quirino Rep. Junie Cua for the House Panel, with Representatives Edcel Lagman (Albay), and Salvador Escudero III (Sorsogon) as members of the House contingent.

Gordon, co-author of the bill, said the joint resolution adopts a Total Compensation Framework consisting of Basic Pay including Step Increments, Standard Allowances and Benefits, Specific-Purpose Allowances and Benefits, and Incentives.

"The resolution seeks to correct the distortions and inconsistencies in the present compensation system, taking into account the principle of "equal pay for work of equal value. It provides for a performance-based scheme to reward exemplary civil servants," he said.

"Under this resolution, a teacher who has a specialization in Science or Math will be granted a salary three steps higher in his or her assigned salary grade," he added.

There are 854,842 employees in the civil service and 290,877 personnel in the military service.

The salary increases will take effect on July 1, 2009 for national government entities and on Jan. 1, 2010 for local government units (LGUs).

The new salary schedule and base pay schedule shall be implemented in four equal yearly tranches. But full implementation may take less than four years because of a provision that for every P50 billion increase in the government budget, five percent shall go to government salary increases.

For LGU employees, their salary rates will be determined on the basis of their LGU's income class and financial capability, to be charged against their respective local government funds.

For Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GOCCs) and Government Financial Institutions (GFIs), their salary increase shall come from their respective corporate funds in their approved corporate operating budgets.

The Joint Resolution is pending ratification by both the Senate and the House of Representatives before being transmitted to the President for enactment into law.

"We are confident that this resolution will be ratified by both the Senate and the House of Representatives before Congress adjourns this week and that the President will prioritize its enactment into law," the senator said