The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Negros Occidental approved the granting of the Collective Negotiation Agreement incentives to more than 2,000 Capitol employees on the same day it passed on third and final reading Tuesday the 2021 proposed P4.47 billion general fund and the P128.07 million budget of the Economic Enterprise Development Department for next year.
Renelo Lastierre, president of the Progressive Alliance of Capitol Employees, said they are elated over the concurrence of the Sanggunian that also granted authority to Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson to enter into an agreement with PACE and sign the CNA.
Lastierre thanked SP presiding officer and Vice Gov. Jeffrey Ferrer and the Sanggunian members for giving importance on the welfare of provincial government persoonel.
PACE is the employees’ union of Capitol workers.
He also lauded Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz and the Provincial Legal Office for favorably endorsing their position on the CNA to the SP.
The signing of the CNA between Lacson and Lastierre has yet to be scheduled.
As part of the procedure, he explained, the CNA will have to be signed by the governor and PACE, and registered with the Civil Service Commission and the labor department as it will be the basis for the granting of the incentives and probably “signing bonus” to union members.
Lastierre said they expect the release of the incentives by Dec. 15.
Only union members are entitled to receive the CNA, Lastierre said.
The PACE leader, however, said the amount for the CNA is yet to be ascertained as it will largely depend on available government savings.
“We will have to wait for the closing of the book to determine how much savings will be earned by the provincial government so that we will have factual basis for the amount,” he told reporters today, Nov. 25.
The employees already received their 13th month bonus in May this year and their 14th month pay and the P5,000 cash gift or the productivity enhancement incentive, last week.
Under the CNA, each worker-member of PACE stands to receive as much as P25,000 depending on the savings from the maintenance and other operating expenses or MOOE, as allowed by the Department of Budget and Management.
No CNA was granted to PACE members last year.
In 2018, the late Gov. Alfredo Marañon, Jr. approved the release of P18,000 each for the CNA.
“Hopefully, we would be able to beat the deadline. Hopefully, we would be able to reach the maximum amount (of P25,000 each) for our employees,” he added.
The much-awaited “extra bonus” that is usually released before the end of December, on the other hand, still hangs in the balance.
Lastierre said as with the additional bonus, the same will be subject to the availability of fund as reflected in the IBES budget or the incentive benefits for exemplary services.
The utilization of the IBES is anchored on the awards received by Capitol from the national government.
The IBES is the source of fund for the extra bonus. It is an item in the budget and the basis (for its use) is the awards, the PACE executive reiterated.
The PRAISE Committee, composed of management as well as the representative of PACE, will have to convene and formulate a resolution to be forwarded to the Sanggunian for approval.
“But we are hoping also that the national government will issue a certain bonus for all government workers for the entire country,” Lastierre added.-ETL
