Teachers' group: Some poll workers still haven't received honoraria

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT)-NCR Union has called for the “immediate release” of honoraria for members of the electoral board who served in the recently concluded midterm elections.

ACT-NCR union president Ruby Bernardo lamented that some teachers worked for more than 24 consecutive hours, with others having to spend their own money for food and transportation, to provide apt service on Election Day, “only to be met with delays in payment.”

“It has been a week since the elections, yet thousands of teachers who served as members of the Electoral Board have not received their long-overdue compensation,” Bernardo said in a statement.

“Hindi katanggap-tanggap na ang mga guro ay nagtitiis ng init, pagod, at panganib para sa halalan, ngunit pagdating sa bayad at benepisyo, laging huli,” she added.

(It’s unacceptable that teachers had to endure heat, exhaustion, and danger for the elections, but their pay and benefits always come late.)

Last week, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said it had already started the distribution of honorarium for teachers who served as poll workers in the midterm elections. The poll body is targeting to complete the payment at least less than ten days after May 12.

On Monday, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) also announced that it approved an additional P1,000 across-the-board honoraria for teachers and other poll workers, with the release of P758.459 million.

This was on top of the P2,000 across-the-board compensation initially authorized by the DBM, funded under the 2025 General Appropriations Act.

The ACT-NCR union also appealed for the tax exemption of all election-related compensation and the provision of overtime pay for teachers who rendered extended hours of service.

“While we acknowledge Comelec’s P1,000 increase in honoraria, it is practically wiped out by the 15% tax deduction. Ang dagdag na P1,000 ay halos nawawalan ng silbi dahil sa 15% na buwis na kinakaltas. Nararapat lamang na maging tax-exempt ang honoraria ng mga guro, at dapat silang bigyan ng overtime pay kung sila ay nagtrabaho nang higit sa 24 na oras,” Bernardo said.

(The additional P1,000 is almost worthless because of the 15% tax deducted from it. The honoraria of teachers should be tax-exempt and they should be given overtime pay if they worked more than 24 hours.)

GMA News Online sought comments from the Comelec and DBM will update this story once they respond.

The number of poll workers for the recently concluded midterm polls was estimated at 758,549—majority of whom are public school teachers. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News

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For more Eleksyon 2025 related content and updates, visit GMA News Online's Eleksyon 2025 microsite.