Good news for more than 3,000 employees of the Negros Occidental provincial government.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson announced yesterday that employees of the provincial government of Negros Occidental are expected to receive salary hikes in 2022.
“Whatever is due to our government employees, of course, we will give it,” Lacson said.
While they have not discussed yet the bonuses for Capitol employees, he stressed, “We will give what is available to be given as bonuses.”
The provincial government of Negros Occidental has proposed a P5.7 billion budget for 2022, or an increase of P1.3 billion from the 2021 budget, following a hike in the National Tax Allocation, or previously the Internal Revenue Allotment share, of the province, at P1.4 billion, Lacson said.
In his letter to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Negros Occidental, Lacson said that P1,752,715,730, or 30.65 percent of the proposed total budget, has been earmarked for personal services of various Capitol offices for 2022.
Renelo Lastierre, president of the Progressive Alliance of Capitol Employees (PACE), yesterday said the funds intended for the salary increase has already been programmed, and they were also assured that it has been included in next year’s budget.
Lastierre said that the Capitol has started implementing the salary increase of employees, based on the Salary Standardization Law, since the start of this year.
All provincial government employees, both with regular and casual status, are receiving salary hikes, the only difference is the security of tenure, he added.
Lastiere also said they welcomed the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) that provides social security coverage for job order and contract of service personnel of the provincial government.
He said the MOA between the Capitol and the Social Security System is a “manifestation and clear pro-worker gestures of the provincial government, as expressly evidenced by the granting of benefits and protection, not only to regular and casual employees, but also to job orders and contract of services.” –GB
