Cebu City employees get bonus, cash gifts

CEBU, Philippines — Over 5,000 casual and regular employees of the Cebu City Government got their yearend bonus equivalent to one month salary starting yesterday.

City Treasurer Veronica Morelos said her office has started releasing the bonus yesterday.

Aside from the year-end bonus, casual and regular employees will also get their cash gifts amounting to P5,000 each.

Morelos said thousands of job order workers of the City Hall are not entitled to receive the yearend bonus and cash gifts as they do not have employee-employer relationship with the city.

City Budget Officer Marietta Gumia said the City Government has set aside P79 million for the yearend bonus which is equivalent to one month basic pay of the employees including the city officials.

The city will also spend at least P18 million for the cash gifts of the employees.

The budget for the bonus and cash gifts is already included in in this year’s P7.1 billion annual budget, including the four supplemental budgets.

Last November 6, the Cebu City Council approved the resolution sponsored by City Councilor Margarita Osmeña requesting the City Treasurers Office to release the bonus and cash gift not earlier than November 15 but not later than the fourth week of this month.

In the resolution, Osmeña cited Section 6 of the DBM Circular No 2016-4 dated April 28, 2016 which provides that “the yearend bonus equivalent to one month basic pay as of October 31 and cash gift of P5,000 shall be given to entitled government personnel not earlier than November 15 of the current year.”

The resolution was approved by all members of the City Council. — MBG (FREEMAN)