CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYEES PRESS FOR REGULARIZATION

Submitted by courage_phil on Thu, 08/19/2010 - 12:40.

Government employees occupying non-plantilla positions and
whose security of tenure depends on a contract of service are commonly
identified as contractual, casuals, co-terminus, Memorandum of Agreement
employees or talents. Today, they are pressing the Aquino Administration to
change their status and make them regular.

 

In a picket rally at the Plaza Salamangca, Taft Avenue in
Manila, members of the militant group COURAGE, the national center of
government employees said President Benigno Aquino III should seriously
consider the condition of the 50,000 co-terminus employees whose employment is
set to expire end of this month.

 

“President Aquino has extended their term from June 30 to
July 30 only. This is not enough given that the majority of these employees
have been in service even earlier than Arroyo’s term. They have been performing
the duties of regular employees. If President Aquino will not act on their ase,
these 50,000 employees plus their families would add-up to the double-digit
unemployment and the already 4 million Filipinos experiencing hunger”, COURAGE
National President Ferdinand Gaite said in reference to a recent SWS survey on
hunger.

 

The 2008 Inventory of Government Personnel made by the Civil
Service Commission has also reported that casual employees totaled 97,324 and contractual,
elective and coterminous employees that total to 20,882, 20,747 and 19,340,
respectively. The bulk of these employees are in the Local Government Units
(LGUs), the National Government Agencies (NGAs) and Government Owned and
Controlled Corporations (GOCCs). Based on latest government report at the end
of the  Arroyo Administration, the number of
co-terminus employees increased to 50,000.

 

“It is ironic that the government who is
supposed to implement our laws on labor and employment is the sole, biggest
employer of contractuals and hence, the number one violator of their rights.
President Aquino who campaigned on the platform of change should reverse this
aberration”, Gaite added.

 

He stressed that if the government can give “employment” to
the families of Budget Secretary Butch Abad then they see no reason why it
cannot to these low-salaried employees. #