CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu Provincial Board approved yesterday the P37.4 million supplemental budget for the Christmas bonus of provincial officials and employees.
The approval was made during the Board’s out of town session held at the Municipality of Medellin in the northern part of the province. The out-of-town session was the second this year. The first was in Aloguinsan in the west last March.
Like the passage of the P3.6 billion annual budget for next year, the supplemental budget was approved in first, second and final reading without question from any board member.
“This is what the Capitol employees are waiting for,” said Vice Governor Agnes Magpale, the Board’s presiding officer.
Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, who was also in Medellin for a consultative meeting with the municipal and barangay officials, certified the matter as urgent.
During the Christmas party last week, Garcia announced that each of the Capitol officials and employees will get at least P20,000 and a sack of Ganador rice as Christmas bonus.
Except for the sack of rice, the amount was the same as last year’s.
However, those who are receiving a monthly salary higher than P20,000 will receive an equivalent of their one month salary as bonus.
Garcia explained that the amount is equivalent to the average satisfactory rating of all the provincial offices and departments.
Had they gotten a performance rating of “very satisfactory” or “outstanding,” they could have received P25,000 or P30,000.
The Province has adopted the performance-based rating in the giving of the Productivity Enhancement Incentive (PEI) and bonuses.
The practice before was that each employee is rated and received the corresponding amount.
This time, Garcia modified the process by getting the average rating of all the offices and departments and the tendency is that those getting high rating would be pulled down while those getting low rating would be pulled up. (FREEMAN)