HOUSE minority leader Marcelino Libanan wants the government to regularize its contractual social workers, saying it is quite ironic and even “insensitive” for the state not to accord implementers of its social protection programs security of tenure.
During the hearing on the proposed budget of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Libanan noted that 15,811 contract of service (COS) or job order workers make up almost half of the department’s personnel.
He also pointed out that out of the DSWD’s 32,842-strong workforce nationwide, only 3,286 workers have regular positions.
“The DSWD, being one of the most important agencies of the Philippine government, should have more institutional support to be able to regularize hardworking individuals and boost their morale,” he told the House committee on appropriations budget hearing last Tuesday on the DSWD’s P197 billion proposed national budget.
Libanan, who raised the urgency of the matter in the face of President Marcos’ call to “rightsize” government offices, said the non-regularization “goes against the DSWD’s core principle of compassion and care for the welfare of the Filipino nation.”
He said it “also negatively impacts the agency’s overall quality of workflow especially when hardworking COS and job order employees decide to resign to seek greener pastures.”
Social Welfare Secretary Erwin Tulfo said the DSWD had previously requested the DBM to convert at least 846 COS positions to regular positions, but the processing remains underway.
Libanan pledged support in securing sufficient budget allocation from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for the DSWD to regularize COS and job order positions and told Tulfo: “Just give us the information that we need so we can request for the creation of permanent positions.”
