Government retirees to get pension hike

MANILA, Philippines – Government pensioners of the Employees Compensation Commission (ECC) are getting an increase in their monthly pension.

The ECC has issued the guidelines on the implementation of the increase in pension for government employees, according to executive director and chief executive officer Stella Banawis.

“The 10 percent across-the-board increase is part of the ECC’s efforts to continually improve the benefits under the Employees’ Compensation Program to make the same more responsive to the welfare and development needs of persons with work-related disabilities,” she said.

The last across-the-board increase for EC pension for the public sector was implemented more than 30 years ago.

The increase shall be retroactive to May 1, 2015, Banawis said.

Under the newly issued ECC board resolution, the pension hike shall be granted to all EC Permanent Partial Disability (PPD), EC Permanent Total Disability (PTD) and EC survivorship pensioners in the public sector.

The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the administering agency of EC for the public sector, shall release the amount necessary to cover the ten percent increase in EC monthly pension, Banawis said.

The ECC has adopted a new pension formula increasing the monthly pension for private sector employees. –Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)