President Rodrigo Duterte has authorized the granting of a one-time service recognition incentive (SRI) worth PHP10,000 each for qualified government employees.
Under Administrative Order (AO) 19 signed on December 2 and released Wednesday, Duterte notes that the grant of SRI is in line with the implementation of Joint Resolution 4 inked on June 17, 2009, which allows the release of incentives as rewards for a government employee's loyalty and exceptional financial and operational performance.
“Government employees deserve to be rewarded to recognize their collective and unceasing participation in and invaluable contribution to the Administration's continuing efforts toward the establishment of streamlined government processes and more responsive delivery of public services,” the President said in AO 19.
AO 19 provides that a PHP10,000-cash bonus will be received by workers in national government agencies, including those in state universities and colleges and government-owned or -controlled corporations (GOCCs), who occupy “regular, contractual, or casual positions.”
“The payment of the SRI to all qualified government employees shall not be earlier than 20 December 2019,” the order read.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, the Bureau of Fire Protection, the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, the Bureau of Corrections, the Philippine Coast Guard, and the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority will also receive the SRI, according to the AO.
AO 19 further states that the grant of the cash incentives will be subject to government employees who are working under “regular, contractual, or casual,” arrangements and are still in the government service as of November 30, 2019.
The civilian personnel must also render at least four months of service, as of November 30, 2019.
Employees who have rendered less than four months will be entitled to a 40 percent pro-rated share of the SRI, while those who have been working in the government in less than three months will get a 30 percent pro-rated share of the incentive.
Those who are hired in the government for less than two months and one month will take home 20 percent and 10 percent, respectively, of the pro-rated share of the cash bonus.
The SRI will also be granted to employees who have not received any additional year-end benefit in the fiscal year 2019 and above the benefit authorized under Republic Act 6868.
AO 19 excludes consultants and experts; laborers; student workers and apprentices; and individuals and groups whose services are engaged through job orders, contracts of service, and other similar work schemes.
Funds needed for the grant of the SRI to employees in the executive branch will be sourced through the national government agencies' Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund and Personnel Services Allotments, as well as through the GOCC's respective approved corporate operating budgets for the fiscal year 2019.
AO 19 also states that employees at the Senate, House of Representatives, judiciary, Office of the Ombudsman and other constitutional offices vested with fiscal autonomy may be granted a one-time SRI by their respective office heads at a uniform rate not exceeding PHP10,000 each, chargeable against the respective agencies' available released allotment.
The one-time SRI may also be made available to local government employees, including village officials, depending on the local government offices' financial capability.
The grant of cash reward to local workers should be exercised with “prudence and judicious use of government funds,” the AO says.
Cash bonuses may also be given to local water districts by their employees at a uniform rate that will be determined by their Boards of Directors and should not exceed PHP10,000 each.
The AO directs the Budget department to issue supplemental guidelines to implement the Order, as may be necessary.
“If any provision of this Order is declared invalid or unconstitutional, the other provisions not affected thereby shall remain valid and subsisting,” it said.
“All issuances, orders, rules, and regulations, or parts thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Order are hereby repealed or modified,” AO 19 added.
AO 19 takes effect immediately following its complete publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation. (Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos/PNA)
