DBM sets aside P70B in proposed 2025 budget for gov't workers' salary hike

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has allocated P70 billion in the proposed P6.352-trillion 2025 national budget for the salary increase of government workers.

"Naglagay tayo ng P70 billion for the increase of salaries of government employees (We allotted P70 billion for the increase of salaries of government employees)," Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman said at a press briefing in Malacañang on Thursday.

To recall, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. vowed in his third State of the Nation Address (SONA) that salaries of state workers will be increased.

Pangandaman said the P70-billion allocation would cover the wage adjustments of government workers for this year and next year.

The Budget chief added that the scheduled salary hike for 2024 will be retroactive next year, meaning the wage adjustments for this year will be felt by state workers starting January 2025 in parallel with the increase scheduled for next year.

"As of now we are perfecting the executive order and we are hoping for the issuance of executive order soon," Pangandaman said.

The Marcos administration will be implementing another four-round salary adjustment initiative for government workers, beginning 2024 until 2027.

The last time wages of state workers were hiked was in 2023, when the fourth and last tranche of the scheduled salary adjustments under the Salary Standardization Law of 2019 expired.

Data from the DBM showed that the number of permanent positions in the entire bureaucracy stands at 1.943 million, which include both civilian and military/uniformed personnel.

HMO benefits

During the briefing, Pangandaman also bared that the 2025 proposed national budget has some P9.6 billion allocation for the health maintenance organization (HMO) benefits for government workers.

The Budget chief said the government allotted P7,000 per employee for HMO coverage.

"This is a nice add to the benefits and allowances of government employees," she said.

Pangandaman earlier said that almost P10 billion was allotted for government workers' HMO benefits in the proposed 2025 budget, noting that they currently do not have incentives for medical checkups and hospitalizations. — VDV, GMA Integrated News