One-time grant for work-disability pensioners to cost P600 million

THE DEPARTMENT of Labor and Employment (DoLE) will allocate about P600 million for work-disability retirees due to receive grants of P20,000 each via the Employees Compensation Commission (ECC).

The one-time grants were authorized Monday by President Rodrigo R. Duterte via Administrative Order No. 39, which cited the need to aid pensioners struggling during the pandemic.

In a statement Tuesday, DoLE said the ECC will disburse the package to 31,000 pensioners granted disability retirements, from both the private and public sector.

ECC Executive Director Stella ZipaganBanawis was quoted as saying that qualified pensioners will not need to apply to the Social Security System (SSS) or Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to receive the grant, which will be provided to EC pensioners classified by the two pension funds under the permanent partial disability, permanent total disability, and survivorship programs.

“It will be automatically granted to them in the same manner as their pension was processed,” DoLE said.

The grant will be released once the implementing rules and regulations are issued. The ECC is tasked with issuing the guidelines in coordination with the SSS and GSIS. —

M. Cortez