Cebu City: Proposed SB 3 to include allocation for wage hike

A glimpse at the facade of the Cebu City Hall. | CDN Digital file photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Regular and casual employees of the Cebu City Hall will soon receive the first tranche of the wage hike mandated by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

The allocation for the purpose is included in Supplemental Budget No. 3 that is currently being reviewed by the Local Finance Committee (LFC).

“Aduna tay SB 3, naa pa sa Local Finance Committee, wala pa gisubmit sa Konseho. Pero hopefully nga karung sunod semana siguro, or a week after next week i-submit sa Konseho for deliberation,” Councilor Noel Wenceslao, chairman of the budget and finance committee of the Cebu City Council, said during a recent episode of Pagtuki, Pagsusi, Pagsuta aired over the Sugboanon Channel.

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Wenceslao would not yet say the total amount of the proposed SB 3.  He said that after the LFC review, the budget request will then be submitted to the City Council for deliberation and its approval.

Last August 2, Marcos issued Executive Order No. 64 that mandates the grant of wage hike to government employees in four tranches until 2027.

EO 64 allows local government units (LGUs) to implement salary increases based on their class and financial capacity. First-class cities, like Cebu City, are authorize to give an increase that is equivalent to 100 percent of the current wage of its employees.

Wenceslao said that the salary adjustment is “retroactive.”

Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandman earlier said that the wage hike will be retroactive from January 2004 and will include the mid-year bonus.

“At least naa say mapaabot ilabi na atong mga regular ug casual employees nga nanghinaot nga masakaan ang atong income kay medyo nagkataas man sad atong pamaliton ug cost of living,” Wenceslao said.

Last September 11, the City Council approved Supplemental Budget No. 2 that amounts to P384-million. Of the allocation, P145 million was set aside for garbage collection while P100 million was for street repairs. At least P70 million was for healthcare programs.