The Civil Service Commission (CSC) has urged government agencies to reassess their human resource (HR) systems and policies toward ensuring a more inclusive and supportive workplace for women.
The move was in celebration of National Women’s Month this March, CSC said. According to its data, women comprise 55 percent of the civil service (pegged at 1,755,424 as of August 2021), and are and should be treated as essential partners in governance and nation-building.
CSC Chairperson Karlo Nograles said that, while economic participation of women in the civil service can be considered high, there is a need to take a deeper look into how they are actually faring at work.
Nograles mentioned that that agencies are duty-bound to strictly implement existing policies that address the specific gender needs of women, particularly those relating to special leave benefits, equal employment opportunity, and protection and prevention against sexual harassment.
The CSC stated that its 2017 Omnibus Rules on Appointments and Other Human Resource Actions, as amended, ensures not only standard procedure but also fair and equal treatment of individuals in the areas of recruitment, selection, appointment, promotion, and other HR actions.
Agencies are also encouraged to adopt Equal Employment Opportunity Principle guidelines to remove barriers and discrimination during the selection process or in participating in or accessing learning and development interventions on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression (SOGIE), civil status, disability, religion, ethnicity, or political affiliation.
Meanwhile, in its Resolution No. 2100064 dated 20 January 2021, circularized via Memorandum Circular No. 11, s. 2021, the CSC amended provisions of the 2017 Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service, pertaining to the offense of sexual harassment.
Specifically, it expanded the definition of sexual harassment as an administrative offense, and reiterated the duties and responsibilities of the Committee on Decorum and Investigation (CODI) as well as the head of the agency in deterring the occurrence of sexual harassment cases within the agency.
The expanded definition also includes online sexual harassment, which consists of acts that use information and communication technology in terrorizing and intimidating victims through physical, psychological, and emotional threats, unwanted sexual misogynistic, transphobic, homophobic and sexist remarks and comments online, whether publicly or through direct and private messages.
The CSC also called for the strengthening of the CODI in government agencies. An active and working CODI would not only deter sexual harassment offenders but also embolden victims to come forward and seek legal remedy.
CSC Resolution No. 2100064 strengthens the role of the CODI in a government agency and averts possible delays in their investigation of complaints of sexual harassment. Among the duties of the CODI is to ensure that the complainant does not suffer from retaliation or any disadvantage in terms of benefits or security of tenure, as well as to guarantee the observance of due process, gender-sensitive handling of the cases, and confidentiality of the identity of the parties involved. Notably, the policy also requires that the CODI “be headed by a woman and not less than half of its members shall be women.”
“The CSC is prepared to work with government agencies to introduce reforms or adjust HR policies that would further empower women and achieve greater gender equality in the public sector workplace,” Nograles said.