Health workers: Salary hike of government personnel ‘unjust’

MANILA, Philippines — Health workers yesterday trooped to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) office and denounced President Marcos’ order granting an increase in the salary of government personnel.

In a statement, the Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) described Executive Order 64, or Updating the Salary Schedule for Civilian Government Personnel and Authorizing Grant of an Additional Allowance and for other Purposes, as stingy, unjust and insulting to the dedicated public health workers and other government employees.

“EO 64 of PBBM (Marcos’ acronym) is unacceptable and unjust. We have been working tirelessly on the frontlines, often risking our own health and safety for the well-being of the patients we serve. The P530-monthly increase will not alleviate health workers and other government employees’ worsening economic situation,” the AHW lamented.

“It will only be eroded by tax and monthly premium contributions such as GSIS (Government Service Insurance System), Pag-IBIG and PhilHealth. Essentially, there is no substantial salary increase in the Marcos Jr. administration,” Sally Ejes, a clerk and president of the Philippine Heart Center Employees Association-AHW, said.

A Salary Grade 1 government employee will only receive an increase of P530/month, from P13,000 to P13,530, according to EO 64.

“If we divide it by 22 working days, it turns out that the salary increase is only P24 per day. The stingy salary increase is way below the family living wage of P1,100/day or P33,000 per month,” the AHW stressed.

“PBBM fails to recognize our sacrifices and contributions, and it is an affront to public health workers’ untiring commitment to serve our fellow countrymen. It is far from the salary increase that health workers and other government employees demanded,” it added.

For Robert Mendoza, a midwife and national president of AHW, it is important that the salary increase is sufficient, livable and based on the actual situation and demands of the government employees.

“It should be a national minimum of P33,000 per month,” Mendoza said.

Public health workers also demanded from the DBM the immediate release of their long overdue Performance Based Bonus (PBB) for 2021 up to 2023.

“The delay in these bonuses adds to the financial strain faced by many public health workers who have dedicated their lives to caring for others,” Mendoza said.

The AHW appealed to the DBM to give the health workers their much-deserved PBB.

“We do our work tirelessly and with much dedication, even spending eight to 16 hours at work. Thus, we are asking for the release of our much-awaited PBB now,” Mendoza said.