Proposed 2019 nat'l budget allots P122B for state workers' pay hike

Around P122 billion has been earmarked for the wage increase of government workers under the proposed P3.757-trillion national budget for 2019.

In a statement on Saturday, House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. said there is a P121.7-billion allocation in the proposed national budget for the salary increases of civilian and military personnel of the national government next year.

Andaya said the P121.7 billion accounts for almost a tenth of the P1.185-trillion budget for personnel services for 2019.

"Personnel services (PS), makes up for almost 32 percent of the Palace-submitted P3.757 trillion government spending request for next year," he said.

Andaya said P51. 7 billion is earmarked for the fourth and final tranche of the Salary Standardization Law IV that covers civilian employees.

Began in 2016,  the  SSL IV is a four-year program  to raise  the public sector pay pursuant to Executive Order 201 signed by President Benigno Aquino III in February  2016.

The pay hike prior to that, SSL III, ran from 2009 to 2012, through E.O. 811 of President Arroyo and House-Senate Joint Resolution No. 4. 

"For uniformed personnel, P70 billion has also been included in next year’s budget to fund the second installment of the law raising the base pay of soldiers, policemen, jail and fire officers, and coastguards," the lawmaker said.

"The law, Joint Resolution No. 1 of Congress, was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in January this year," he said.

Also, Andaya said the P1.185-trillion personnel services allocation, funds the first-year compensation for the 10,000 Teacher 1; 10,000 Police Officer 1; 3,000 Fire Officer 1; 2,000 Jail Officer 1 and other positions to be created in the bureaucracy next year.

The increase in the number of government employees and retired uniformed personnel triggers a corresponding hike in the payroll and pension costs of the government, Andaya added.

Citing the Department of Budget and Management, he said authorized civilian positions in the national government was 1.1 million in 2015.

This year it is pegged at 1.32 million and is programmed to reach 1.41 million next year.

“Isang dahilan ng pagdami ng bilang ng mga kawani ng gobyerno ay yung K-12 na program. Kailangan mag-hire ng dagdag na teachers. In fact, meron pa ngang 105,000 vacant teaching positions na inutos ni Pangulong Duterte na dapat mapunuan agad," Andaya said.

“Pag pulis naman, every 500 increase in population requires us to hire one policeman. So yung PS increase in some aspects is due to population pressure.” 

Also to benefit from the pay hike for uniformed personnel are selected employees of the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority. —Ted Cordero/LBG, GMA News