Mga kawani ng gobyerno, makatatanggap ng 14th month pay sa Mayo

Makatatanggap ng 14th month pay o mid-year bonus sa Mayo 15 ang mga kawani ng pamahalaan,  ayon sa Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

Ang naturang bonus na katumbas ng isang buwang sahod ay alinsunod sa Executive Order (EO) No. 201 na nilagdaan ni Pangulong Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III noong Pebrero.

Nakapaloob sa Budget Circular No. 2016-3 na ipinalabas ni Budget Secretary Florencio "Butch" Abad nitong Huwebes, ang mga kawani na makatatanggap ng 14th month pay sa susunod na buwan.

Sakop ng Budget Circular ang lahat ng posisyon sa mga kawaning sibilyan (regular, casual o contractual), pati na ang mga appointive o elective, full-time o part-time.

"Eight in every 10 civilian personnel will receive their mid-year bonus in full, or tax-free under Republic Act 10653, which provides that gross benefits such as the 13th month pay and other benefits not exceeding P82,000 shall be tax exempt," saad sa hiwalay na pahayag ni Abad nitong Biyernes.

“These means the majority of civilian personnel will take home their mid-year bonus in full. They are the 970,943 civilian employees belonging to Salary Grades 1 to 16,” dagdag ng kalihim.

Kasama rin sa mga makatatanggap ng bonus ang military personnel ng Armed Forces of the Philippines sa ilalim ng Department of National Defense, at ang uniformed personnel ng Philippine National Police, Philippine Public Safety College, Bureau of Fire Protection, at Bureau of Jail Management and Penology ng Department of Interior and Local Government.

Mayroon ding bonus ang mga uniformed personnel ng Philippine Coast Guard at National Mapping and Resource Information Authority.

Ipinaliwanag naman ng DBM na dapat nakapagsilbi na sa kanilang tungkulin ang mga kawani ng apat na buwan mula July 1, 2015 hanggang May 15, 2016 para makatanggap ng bonus.

Hindi naman saklaw ng bonus ang mga kawani ng government-owned and -controlled companies. Ito ay dahil sa sakop na sila ng Compensation and Position Classification System sa E.O. 203 na pinirmahan ni Aquino noong nakaraang buwan.

"The amounts required for the grant of FY 2016 Mid-Year Bonus to personnel of National Government Agencies (NGAs) shall be charged against the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund," ayon sa circular.

"The DBM shall issue the corresponding Notice of Cash Allocation to cover the Mid-Year Bonus of agency personnel to be given not earlier than May 15 of the current year, subject to the provisions of National Budget Circular No. 561 dated January 4, 2016 on the release of funds," dagdag nito. – FRJ, GMA News