HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Republic of the Philippines RECEIVE
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE NED
Batasan Hills, Quezon City DaTE: :
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SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS|

First Regular Session RES'STRATION UNIT

BILLS ANU INDEX SERVICE

1514

HOUSE BILL No.

Introduced by ACT Teachers Party-List
Rep. ANTONIO L. TINIO and Rep. FRANCISCA L. CASTRO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

For decades, the principle of “equal pay for equal work” has not been felt by
employees of the constitutional body, Commission on Elections (COMELEC).
COMELEC constitutes around 6,000 employees nationwide, the majority (5,000) of
whom are from the rank-and-file receiving a mid- to low-level income. These
employees express great dismay at the glaring disparity of their current salaries
compared to fellow government employees with similar qualifications in other
agencies, as well as other Constitutional bodies. Thus, in 2012, the COMELEC
Employees’ Union (COMELEC-EU) was organized to lobby for substantial and just
salary increases for election workers, among other purposes.

In their research and consultations, the COMELEC-EU found that the disparity
in their salary schedule, which dates back to the 1990s, as opposed to those in other
agencies ranges from three to five salary grades (SG).

COMELEC lawyers, accountants, statisticians, and other professionals receive
less than their counterparts in other agencies and it is only in COMELEC where they
are classified as rank-and-file. For instance, COMELEC lawyers (Attorney Il, Election
Officers for cities, and Provincial Election Supervisors), are in SG 18, SG 21, or 24,
ing P33,452, P43,439 or P56,610 monthly, respectively. On the other hand, the
Attorney's Office gives SG 25 to SG 29 (P53,730 to P73,099) to its Public
Attorneys (PA | to PA V), while clerks of court in the Regional Trial Courts are at SG 24
to SG 26 (P56,610 to P67,690).



The duties and jurisdiction of Provincial Election Supervisors, who manage
areas with 500,000 to 1,000,000,000 voters, make them roughly equivalent to
Division Superintendents in the Department of Education (DepEd). The former are at
SG 24 (P56,610) while the latter are at SG 26 (P67,690). Election Officers manage
areas with 20,000 to 400,000 voters, making them similarly situated with DepEd's
District Supervisors. The former are at SG 12 to SG 21 (P43,439).

Every step of the election process, from voters’ registration to the canvassing
of votes, is carried out because COMELEC employees toil all year round. They work
even harder during the four-month-long election season, and are additionally saddled
by flawed automation. It is unjust that poll workers—the very backbone of the
democratic exercise—are rewarded by government with salaries disproportionate to
their vital roles.

Answering their call for decent salaries will also help insulate them from graft
and corruption during elections, and compensate them for the risks they are forced
to take due to election violence.

For these reasons, approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

OF

Rep. ANTONIO L. TINIO L. CASTRO
ACT Teachers Party-List (CT Teachbts Party-list



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Batasan Hills, Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

4

HOUSE BILLNo. 15!

Introduced by ACT Teachers Party-List
Rep. ANTONIO L. TINIO and Rep. FRANCISCA L. CASTRO

AN ACT
UPGRADING THE SALARIES OF EMPLOYEES OF THE COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Title. This Act shall be known as the “COMELEC Employees’ Salary
Upgrading Act of 2016.”

SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. \n accordance with the Constitution’s equal
protection clause, it is the Government's responsibility to provide fair and adequate
remuneration to employees with the ultimate goal of achieving equal pay for equal
work in government service.

SECTION 3. Increase in Salary Grades of Field COMELEC Employees. The present
minimum salary grade level of employees of the Commission on Elections shall be
adjusted in the following manner:

CURRENT | INCREASED |

POSITION SALARY SALARY
GRADE GRADE
Contested Ballot Box Custodian | 8 |
Contested Ballot Box Custodian II 10 | 13
oxmusto" |

Election Assistant | 7 | 10


Election Assistant | 3 12

Election Field Officer 21 24
Election Officer | - 12 1 |
Election Officer I : 3 a8
Election Officer Il 7 wot
‘Election Officer 1V (outside NCR) a
Election Officer IV (within NCR) 2 |
Election Precincts Analystl 10 Bi
Election Precincts Analyst ll eer
Regional Election Attorney. —=S*S~SST) 2 |
/Provincial Election Supervisor! 23 6
Provincial Election Supervisoril —=~=S«SST 26
Provincial Election Supervisorill —~=S=s-25SS iG
Provincial Election Supervisor V_ | 26” 26

SECTION 4. Reclassification/Upgrading of Plantilla Positions in the COMELEC Main
and Field Offices. All remaining rank and file plantilla positions in the COMELEC main
and field offices, including casual employees, shall be reclassified and upgraded
accordingly.

SECTION 5. Rules and Regulations. The Commission on Elections and the
Department of Budget and Management as well as other government agencies
charged with the enforcement of this Act or any of its parts shall promulgate the
necessary implementing rules and regulations. Such rules and regulations shall
become effective fifteen (15) days after announcement of its adoption in newspapers
of general circulation.

SECTION 6. Appropriations. The Government shall appropriate such amount as may
be necessary to carry out the objectives of this Act. The initial funding required for
the implementation of this Act shall be sourced from the savings of the COMELEC and
other possible sources that may be determined by the Chairperson, and subsequent
funds needed shall be included in the General Appropriations Act for the year
following the implementation of this Act.

SECTION 7. Separability Clause. Should any provision herein be declared
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity of the other provisions of this
Act.

SECTION 8. Repealing Clause. All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations, or


other issuances or parts thereof inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are
hereby repealed.

SECTION 9. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication
in the Official Gazette or one (1) newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,