A glimpse on the facade of the Cebu Metropolis Corridor. CDN Digital photograph | Brian J. Ochoa [JULY 16, 2023: FILE PHOTO]
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Fee on Audit (COA) revealed that the Cebu Metropolis authorities left 2,311 plantilla positions vacant, which quantities to P2.192 billion in unutilized funds.
Plantilla positions, everlasting roles throughout the authorities, are important for sustaining environment friendly and efficient service supply to the town’s constituents. Nevertheless, the massive variety of unfilled positions interprets to the town authorities’s general operations and repair high quality.
2,311 vacant plantilla positions
As of December 31, 2023, the town had accredited a complete of three,645 plantilla positions, but only one,334, or 36.6 % had been stuffed. The remaining 63.4 %—a complete of two,311 positions—stay vacant.
In distinction, the town’s personnel stock contains 3,172 informal staff and three,338 job order employees.
On April 1, preventively suspended Metropolis Mayor Michael Rama introduced that regularization of presidency positions is now obtainable, following the completion of the worker analysis course of for the rightsizing implementation.
The worker analysis aimed to scale back the variety of staff from 10,000 to three,000 by 2025. Consequently, a “huge regularization” is about to start.
Rama declared an growth of the federal government workforce, with 600 everlasting positions now open.
READ MORE:
COA says Cebu Metropolis lacks money reserves for Singapore-like imaginative and prescient
COA flags Cebu Metropolis over P114.5M unliquidated funds to NGOs
In accordance with preventively suspended metropolis administrator Collin Rosell, there are about 2,300 common job spots that have to be stuffed throughout the town authorities, however “as a result of finances limits,” solely 600 will be made everlasting this yr.
“The knowledge supplied by the Human Useful resource Improvement Workplace (HRDO) additionally confirmed that since calendar yr (CY) 2021 there had been no important enhance within the variety of everlasting staff occupying plantilla positions, as proven beneath. In distinction, greater than 50 % of the Metropolis’s workforce includes primarily of informal and job order employees. These recommend that there have been no sustained efforts to refill the vacant plantilla positions,” the report acknowledged.
The above figures, COA reported, highlighted a reliance on non permanent workers over everlasting staff that had continued since 2021. Regardless of the provision of budgeted funds, there was no important enhance within the variety of everlasting staff.
What’s a plantilla place?
Plantilla positions are everlasting roles inside authorities businesses, designed to make sure the steadiness and continuity of providers.
These positions are created primarily based on a rigorous evaluation of the company’s wants and monetary functionality, as mandated by Part 76 of the Native Authorities Code (RA No. 7160).
The regulation requires every native authorities unit (LGU) to develop its organizational construction and staffing sample, tailor-made to its service necessities and monetary sources.
READ MORE:
COA flags Cebu Metropolis’s ‘extreme’ money advances for overseas journey
CSC presents assist to tenured non-plantilla gov’t employees to go CSE
The influence of vacant plantilla positions
The regulation gives that leaving plantilla positions unfilled can have a number of hostile results on the town’s operations and repair supply.
These positions are supposed to be stuffed by certified personnel who can present constant and high-quality providers.
When these roles are left vacant, it results in a reliance on informal and job order employees, who might not have the identical stage of dedication or coaching as everlasting staff. This can lead to inefficiencies, decrease service high quality, and an absence of continuity in service supply.
Within the case of Cebu Metropolis, the COA audit report signifies that some informal and job order employees have been performing capabilities meant for plantilla positions.
This follow just isn’t in accordance with the Civil Service Fee’s (CSC) guidelines and undermines the aim of getting a structured staffing sample.
For instance, the Workplace of the Constructing Official has 14 vacancies for the Engineer I place, but 10 informal staff are at present holding these roles.
Equally, the Metropolis Agriculturist’s Workplace (CAO) has an informal worker filling the function of Administrative Aide I, regardless of a emptiness for this place.
“Whereas among the plantilla positions remained vacant, the identical place titles had been held or the identical capabilities had been carried out by informal staff. This isn’t consistent with Merchandise g, Part 9, Rule IV of the Omnibus Guidelines on Appointments and Different Human Useful resource Actions of the CSC,” the report emphasised.
COA’s suggestions
The COA beneficial for the town to accentuate its efforts to fill these vacant positions by hiring and selling certified informal and job order employees. This strategy would improve the standard of providers supplied to the general public and provide job safety to deserving staff.
“In view of the above, we beneficial that Administration intensify its efforts in filling up the vacant plantilla positions via hiring and/or promotion/regularization of its present informal and job order employees who’re certified for the positions to reinforce the standard of the Metropolis’s providers and to offer job alternatives to potential exterior skills and safety of tenure to deserving in-house personnel,” the report acknowledged.
READ MORE: Comelec receives highest COA score
Cebu Metropolis’s response
In response, the town’s Human Useful resource Improvement Workplace (HRDO) has been actively pursuing initiatives to regularize and reorganize its workforce.
In accordance with their April 22, 2024 reply, the HRDO has been transitioning eligible informal and project-based personnel into everlasting roles. Final yr, 169 positions had been marketed, leading to 99 everlasting appointments.
This yr, 50 positions have been revealed, with 4 staff already appointed to everlasting roles.
Learn Subsequent
