Nurses’ hope for wage hike one step closer to reality – Lacson

Senator Panfilo M. Lacson on Thursday said government nurses' hope for a much-needed wage increase is one step closer to reality after the Senate adopted one of his proposed amendments to the R4.1-trillion national budget bill.

The Senate version of the national budget bill now includes a special provision proposed by Lacson - one of the vice chairpersons of the Senate contingent to the Senate-House of Representatives bicameral conference committee tackling the budget bill - to increase the salary grade of government nurses.

The Senate, by a vote of 220-0, approved on second, third, and final reading on Wednesday night its version of the Malacañang-proposed 2020 General

Appropriation Bill (GAB).

Under the new special provision, "Increasing the Salary Grade of Government Nurses," the base pay of government nurses shall be Salary Grade 15

(R30,531 a month), in compliance with the Supreme Court's decision (G.R. 215746).

The provision stated that the implementation of the salary adjustment shall take effect when the decision of the Supreme Court had become final and executory, but not earlier than the start of Fiscal Year 2020.

Lacson had also specified that the amount needed to fund the implementation of the Supreme Court decision should be sourced from appropriations for staffing modifications and upgrading of salaries.

During his interpellation of the Department of Health's (DOH’s) 2020 budget last Nov. 19, Lacson noted that R3.173 billion is needed for the salary upgrade of government nurses, so they can attain Salary Grade 15.

"We can introduce a special provision and source the R3 billion from the R12.469 billion under that particular item (Miscellaneous Personnel Benefit Fund or MPBF)," he said.

“As the funds are already there under MPBF, government nurses need not wait for the passage of legislation or the availability of funds to be provided by the Department of Budget and Management,” he added.

“They don’t have to wait six months or another year. By January, once we enact the GAA (General Appropriations Act) for 2020, ang salary upgrade nila (their salary grade) is taken care of,” Lacson noted.