MAKARAANG mabigyan ng cash benefits ang 10,000 regular employees ng lungsod, nilagdaan ni Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso ang Ordinance 8718 na layuning magbigay ng P3,000 gratuity pay sa lahat ng 8,000 non-regular na mga empleyado tulad ng job orders at contractual basis.

Ayon sa alkalde, ang ordinansa ay mabilis na naipasa ng Manila City Council sa pagsisikap nina Vice Mayor at Presiding Officer Honey Lacuna-Pangan at Majority Floor Leader Atty. Joel Chua, na naglaan ng kabuuang P29,883,000 para sa nasabing layunin.

Dagdag ng alkalde, ang pagbibigay ng one-time gratuity pay ay sumasakop sa lahat ng mga kawani na nakakontrata ang serbisyo at gayundin ang mga trabahador na job order at ito ay alinsunod sa Administrative Order No. 38.

“As mentioned in AO No. 38, Contract of Service (COS) and Job Order (JO) workers in the government are paid salaries or wages equivalent to the daily salaries/wages of comparable positions in government and a premium of up to 20 percent of such salary/wage. However, they do not enjoy benefits accorded to government employees such as the Personnel Economic Relief Allowance, Mid-Year and Year-End Bonuses and Performance-Based Bonus among others, considering that they have no employer-employee relationship with the government,” ayon sa ordinansa.

Sinasabi pa sa AO No. 38: “LGUs are encouraged to adopt in their respective offices the grant of Gratuity Pay to workers whose services are engaged through COS and JO, utilizing appropriate and available funding sources from their respective local government funds”.

Ayon pa sa alkalde, ang pagbibigay ng year-end Gratuity Pay sa mga COS at JO sa gitna ng global pandemic ay “is a well-deserved recognition of their hard work and dedication to the city”. (RENE CRISOSTOMO)