Cebu City Hall officials who are fully vaccinated raise their hands when Acting Mayor Michael Rama asked them to do so after the flag raising ceremony on Monday, November 15, 2021. CDN Digital photo | Mae Fhel Gom-os
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City job-order employees who are vaccinated against the COVID-19 will still get a Christmas bonus, although it may be smaller than what casual and regular employees of the city government will receive.
Councilor Raymond Alvin Garcia, City Council’s committee of budget and finance chairperson, said that the budget has already been approved ahead of time as part of the 2021 annual budget last year.
The budget for the JO bonuses was approved in December 2020 as the executive department anticipated that bonuses of the JOs will be different from the casual and regular employees.
“Wala man gyod tay employee-employer relationship anang sa JOs but nevertheless, they will be receiving something.”
“Makakuha sila og P3,000 bonus karong December and then nangita pa kog laing budget but murag nakakita na ko nga modungag tag one sack of rice, 50 kilos for all job order employees,” said the councilor.
There are at least 4,700 JOs in the City Hall from the 27 departments who will benefit from this P3,000 cash bonus and sack of rice.
Garcia said that the City Council has approved the JOs’ bonuses and will perhaps approve another budget for the sacks of rice, but the distribution will be left to the Executive Department.
This means that Mayor Michael Rama can impose the policy that only vaccinated individuals can get the bonus, as he had been repeating in the past weeks.
“Now of course, ang implementation ana pag-release, Office of the Mayor, so kung si Mayor Rama will say nga ang release will be dependent on kung vaccinated ba or dili, then that is his prerogative kay he is authorized to do such basta kita we will budget already for everybody for all the 4,700,” said Garcia.
As for the casual and regular employees who will be getting P20,000 bonuses this year for Christmas, their bonuses are pending approval of the Cebu City Council as part of the Supplemental Budget No. 2 (SB2).
The SB2 is still with the Cebu City Development Council for approval sa Annual Investment Plan (AIP) and afterwhich, will be proposed to the Cebu City Council within the next few weeks.
Garcia assured that the SB2 will be passed before December 25, 2021.
/bmjo
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