MANILA, Philippines - The Aquino administration announced yesterday that the Christmas bonus for the 1.6 million government employees will be distributed by Nov. 30 and an additional P10,000 "holiday bonus" has also been proposed to be given this year.
Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said the total year-end bonus amounts to P27.82 billion, half of which was released to employees last May as mid-year bonus.
In a statement, Abad bewailed reports that the government is cash-strapped, saying that the P10,000 proposed additional bonus is "proof of a stable fiscal condition" and the government would shoulder it in full.
As in the past years, the bonus will be called Productivity Enhancement Incentive (PEI), wherein P7,000 will come from the national government while up to P3,000 will come from the savings of respective agencies.
Abad said the proposal would cost the government P11.68 billion.
Under the policy, agencies that cannot provide their P3,000 share in full or in part to their employees for insufficient savings will be assisted by national government, which will shoulder the P10,000 in full.
Abad said the new policy would prevent agencies from artificially generating savings at the expense of programs and projects they are implementing to finance their share of PEI.
Under the proposed administrative order submitted to the President, employees in the executive branch, including those in government-owned or controlled corporations and financial institutions, will be granted a one-time PEI of P10,000 each.
Eligible for PEI are employees who have been hired on a permanent, temporary, casual or contractual status, and still active in the service as of Nov. 30 of this year.
Full amount will be given for those who have rendered at least four months of service.
For GOCCs and government financial institutions, the amount will be charged against the savings of these government firms in full or partial, depending on sufficiency of funds.
The PEI bonus will be on top of half of the regular year-end bonus - in the form of half of the 13th month pay and cash gift of P5,000 - which is already being given to government employees starting Nov. 15 up to 30.
"Our improved expenditure and deficit management will allow the national government to authorize the grant of additional bonus to government personnel on top of what they regularly receive," Abad said.
As for employees in the legislative and judicial branches of government as well as other offices with fiscal autonomy, they may be granted bonus at rates not exceeding P10,000 and chargeable to their respective savings.
The grant of the PEI for employees in local government units (LGUs) may be determined by the concerned Sanggunia depending on an LGU's financial capability and subject to the personal services limitation in the Local Government Code.
PNP early Christmas bonus
Meanwhile, it's an early Christmas for 140,000 members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) after PNP chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome approved the release of their 2011 year-end bonus.
Bartolome said policemen nationwide would receive a total of P10,000, since the national government will provide P7,000 while the PNP will give P3,000.
He said Director Rey Lañada, PNP director for comptrollership, told him checks drawn from the PNP account with the Land Bank of the Philippines have been released by the PNP Finance Service to Police Regional Offices and National Support Units nationwide for issuance and distribution to personnel.