Teachers to get P4,000 poll pay

SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga, Philippines – Teachers tasked to serve in the May 13 elections will each receive P4,000 poll duty pay and be covered by the P30-million accident or life insurance provided by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

The poll duty pay consists of P3,000 honorarium, P500 transportation allowance, and another P500 for testing and sealing the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines.

This year’s poll duty pay is P300 less than what was given to teachers in the 2010 elections.

ACT Teachers party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio told The STAR yesterday that “while the teachers received P4,300 each in the 2010 polls, they are to receive a total of only P4,000 for their services in the May polls because of the removal of the sealing of book of voters as part of their duty.”

But their transportation allowance was increased from P300 to P500, for a total of P4,000.

Tinio said that teachers earlier asked the Comelec to increase their honorarium from P3,000 to P5,000, but it was not granted in the memorandum of agreement signed recently by the poll body and the Department of Education.

Tinio said ACT Teachers will continue to ask the Comelec to increase the honorarium of teachers to at least P5,000, and noted that the party-list is also backing the appeal of the rank and file employees of the poll body for higher election duty pay.

He also expressed optimism that teachers will still get extra pay after the elections should the Comelec have savings from the polls.

Last January, Tinio noted the Department of Budget and Management released P4.14 billion to Comelec to fund the preparatory activities for the coming synchronized national and local elections.