THE Bureau of Corrections is poised to lay off 275 of its personnel by the weekend due to their failure to meet the eligibility and education requirements under Republic Act 10575, or the Bureau of Corrections Modernization Act of 2013.
The Department of Justice has rejected the agency’s appeal for another extension to allow them to comply.
Under the law which took effect in 2018, applicants to BuCor must possess a bachelor’s degree and the appropriate civil service eligibility.
It also mandates that current BuCor workers who do not meet the requirements must fulfill it until March 15, 2023 but Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, citing the exigencies posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, suspended the implementation of the attrition system for a non-extendable period of one year, or until March 15 this year.
The Qualification Standards for Uniformed Personnel of the agency were only approved by the Civil Service Commission on March 16, 2018 due to delays in the issuance of its Implementing Rules and Regulations.
In October 2023 and again last month, BuCor Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. appealed the plight of the agency personnel originally numbering 421 listed for attrition. A total of 41 have filed for early retirement while 105 have complied with the eligibility and educational requirements, leaving only 275 non-compliant “who will be subjected to attrition.”
Catapang’s office said his appeal apparently went nowhere as the DOJ chief informed him that the “suspension of the attrition system cannot be further extended beyond the original non-extendable period of one year.”
Remulla also stressed that the previous one-year extension was meant to provide the affected personnel with a reasonable timeframe to meet the standards under RA 10575, adding that another extension may compromise the overall effectiveness of the attrition system and the department’s commitment to maintaining a qualified and competent workforce within the BuCor.
“While the Department understands the difficulties suffered by the personnel during the COVID pandemic, it is essential to strike a balance between the exigencies of the service and the need to uphold the statutory requirements provided under 10575,” the DOJ chief added.
Catapang said the agency has no choice but to implement the provisions of the law.
“I urged the personnel who will be attrited that they can recommend their relatives to apply for jobs at BuCor and I assure them that as long as they are qualified for the job they will be accommodated,” the BuCor chief said.
Earlier, Catapang appealed for understanding from the affected BuCor workers, saying he inherited the problem from previous BuCor leadership.
He said the previous administrations should have mandated the workers at risk to comply with the requirements of RA 10575 years before.
He pointed out that changing the law’s requirements to extend the deadline for fulfilling the professional requirements beyond March 15 was beyond his control.
