10% pay hike bill for govt workers to become law Mar. 23 - Recto

The bill granting a 10-percent pay raise to employees of the national government employees and a P1,200 additional monthly allowance to soldiers and policemen will become a law the latest by March 23 , Sen. Ralph Recto said .

Recto, principal author of the measure, said the bill was transmitted to Malacanang on Feb. 22, and, thus under the Constitution, would lapse into law 30 days later, or becomes one if signed by President Arroyo earlier .

Once signed, the law would, however, take effect on July, as the budget for the increase P10.3 billion can cover over only the requirements for the second half of the year, Recto explained .

Out of the said allocation, P8.2 billion will be set aside for an across-the-board ten percent adjustment in the basic pay of an estimated 839,757 civilian employees in the national government plantilla.

The rest, or P2.1 billion, will fund the increase in the subsistence allowance of uniformed personnel from P60 to P90 a day, and the doubling of their hazard pay from P120 to P240 a month.

Aside from members of the Armed Forces and the National Police, uniformed personnel, whose number is expected to reach 282,349 by the end of the year, include jail guards, firemen and Coast Guard personnel.

Recto explained that the bill also authorizes local governments and government corporations to grant the increase, the outlay for which shall be charged to their respective operating budgets.

Should the financial standing of a GOCC or an LGU prevent it from granting the full 10-percent hike in pay, it can , however, under the bill, still grant a partial increase , Recto said

Recto said the hike would benefit public school teachers, who, at 439,257, account for the largest block in the civil service.

Under the bill, a teacher will get an increase of about P1,000 a month, an amount Recto admitted as certainly not enough, but will help a teacher partially cope with the cost of living,

Recto said the scheduled increase in July would bring to P2,000 the raise in pay government workers have received since January 2006, when the P1,000-a- month additional compensation or adcom allowance took effect. A third one is expected to be announced by President Arroyo on her July State of the Nation Address.

Together, the 10-percent pay hike and the P1,000 adcom would cost the government P35 billion a year , which , Recto stressed, was made possible due to increased tax collection. These are the tax dividends of the public sector.

The 10-percent pay hike for government workers bill evolved from Senate Bill 2196 which Recto filed on January 23, 2006 .

Earlier, Recto, pursuant to his HEARTS Health, Education, Agriculture, Roads, Technology and Shelter agenda, filed a bill seeking a P2,000 a month graduated adjustment in public sector compensation.