CSC explains how 65-year-old gov't workers can stay on the job

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) said Monday that government employees who've reached the compulsory retirement age of 65 years may still be allowed to work given the right conditions.

CSC Resolution No. 2000002 dated January 3, 2020 specifies the conditions needed for the grant of requests for service extension, the Commission said in a statement.

"These conditions, along with the agency head’s justification of the need for the service, include completion of a program or project identified as a priority of the agency; deployment in services that have an impact on national security, safety, and national or local emergency as declared by the appropriate authority; and provision of highly technical expertise not readily available in the agency," it said.

Under the guidelines, extension of service shall be allowed for a period of six months, and extended for another six months under meritorious circumstances.

"Requests for extension of service for completion of the 15 years of service required under the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) Law may be granted but only for a maximum of two years," the agency said.

The requests for extension of service to complete the 15 years of service shall be granted to government employees, irrespective of the status of appointment. This includes those who have optionally retired and have availed themselves of retirement benefits but were later reemployed.

However, the CSC noted that such service extension requests resulting from the incurrence of leave of absence without pay for one year shall not be allowed, if such leave of absence is due to any reason other than illness.

The guidelines further state that officials and employees on service extension are entitled to salaries, allowances, and other remunerations that are normally given as part of an employee’s compensation package. 

They are also covered by Civil Service Law and rules and may be held accountable for any violations, the CSC said.

CSC Resolution No. 2000002 was published in a newspaper of general publication only last October 2.