Over 6,000 competing for BOC posts

MANILA, Philippines - A total of 6,013 people are competing for 1,056 vacant positions in the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

Out of the 6,013 applicants who submitted and met the requirements, Customs spokesperson Charo Logarta-Lagamon said yesterday 4,364 applicants came from Luzon, 702 from the Visayas and 947 from Mindanao.

“This number included new applicants and existing BOC personnel who are applying for promotion,” Lagamon said.

Seeing that more than 6,000 people are interested to work for the bureau was “a good sign,” she said.

The BOC no longer considered the applications of those who submitted their documents after the Aug. 6 deadline and those who sent their applications through email.

The applications are now undergoing preliminary screening to determine if all the minimum qualifications like education, experience, training and eligibility for the position applied are met.

Those who pass the initial screening would be notified by the BOC via text message or email between Aug. 18 to 24. They are required to take the pre-employment, general ability examination to be conducted by the Civil Service Commission on Aug. 31.

Once they pass the civil service exam, the applicants would also take the aptitude and psychometric tests to measure their personality, interest, aptitude and values.

This would greatly help the bureau in eliminating future employees who are susceptible to graft and corrupt practices, Lagamon said.

To prevent nepotism, applicants with relatives in the BOC up to the 4th degree of consanguinity are barred from applying for any position in accordance with Executive Order No. 292.

Applicants who pass the general ability and aptitude exams would then undergo competency-based tests crafted by the BOC that would further test the fitness of applicants to perform the duties of specific positions.

The competency-based tests consist of a written exam and interview. A physical fitness test would be conducted for applicants of the Intelligence and Enforcement groups.

The new BOC hiring process is in line with the revised guidelines and procedures in the hiring and promotion of personnel for first and second level positions under Customs Memorandum Order (CMO) 15-2014.

The CMO aims to simplify the guidelines, widen the sphere of selection, as well as clarify the procedure for applicant screening to get the best qualified applicants for the bureau.

The BOC only has about 3,600 employees, about half of its actual plantilla size of about 7,000.

As a result, most employees are tasked to do double duties.

The lack of manpower is further aggravated by natural attrition like retirement, death and dismissal from service.