To keep gov’t contractual workers at home during COVID-19 quarantine, DBM guarantees they would be paid without working

Contractual workers in government service will get paid despite the community quarantines being implemented in the country, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said on Friday (March 20).

However, Budget Secretary Wendel E. Avisado told the Inquirer that only temporary employees hired directly by the government were covered by the joint DBM and Commission on Audit (COA) circular issued on March 19 to ensure sustained pay for contract of service (COS) and job order (JO) personnel during the lockdown.

Avisado said contractuals working for service providers are not covered.

“If it is the government that suspends work, the government will have to pay as it is not of their [employees] own making not to be able to report for work,” Avisado said.

Avisado said all government personnel, including contractuals, must be properly compensated.

Avisado said he was hopeful that private service providers could also extend help to their people.

In a separate statement, Sen. Joel Villanueva said more than 660,000 contractual government employees would benefit despite the quarantines.

“The move will also help the government keep workers and their families at their homes because of the assurance that people will still be able to provide for their basic needs in the next few weeks,” said Villanueva, who chairs the Senate committee on labor, employment, and human resource development.

Edited by TSB