Aquino proposes minimum take-home pay for gov’t employees

by Gabriel Pabico Lalu, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Mar 19, 2019

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Bam Aquino has proposed the provision of a minimum monthly net take-home pay for government employees to ensure that workers can provide for their family’s needs.

Aquino said on Tuesday his Senate Bill No. 710 or an Act Providing for a Minimum Monthly Net Take-Home Pay for All Government Employees After Authorized Deductions would ensure that employees would still receive part of their take-home pay amid salary deductions brought by loans and mandated obligations.

“Government employees have turned to loan agents, government and private, to make ends meet. They go into debt in order to provide for their families’ needs, even to the extent that the entirety of their salary end up going to loan payments,” Aquino said.

If enacted, the bill would set the minimum take-home pay of workers at 30 percent of each employee’s salary.

He also relayed that authorized deductions will be prioritized in the following order: income taxes collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), followed by contributions for the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG) and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth).

This will be followed by deductions due to mutual benefits associations, thrift banks and non-stock savings and loan associations duly operating under existing laws with area managed by and for the benefit of, government employees; and by duly-licensed insurance companies accredited by national government agencies and other deductions as may be authorized by law.

Aquino explained that any deficiency in loan payments due to the mandatory minimum take-home pay may be addressed by direct arrangements voluntarily made by the employees to the lending institutions.

He noted that with the bill, government employees would be able to budget and prioritize their expenses.

“It is imperative that the state curb unhealthy practices and provide clear policies in support of its government servant-leaders,” he added. /muf