The Social Security System (SSS) has extended operating hours of its branches in Metro Manila to improve frontline services following the influx of transactions.
In a statement, newly-installed SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Michael G. Regino said on Friday, March 11, that he ordered their branch heads in the National Capital Region (NCR) to extend their operating hours effective immediately.
SSS offices in NCR would be opened from 6:00am to 6:00pm on weekdays and some offices on Saturdays to accommodate as many transactions as possible, Regino said.
He noted that SSS has recorded surge of transactions since the Alert Level 1 status was declared.
“These measures are meant to give our members, employers, and pensioners more time to complete their transactions with us without much hassle and difficulty,” Regino said. “I hope those long queues and camping out will soon be a thing of the past.”
SSS branches in Diliman, Cubao, San Francisco Del Monte, Batasan Hills, New Panaderos, Makati-JP Rizal, Pasig-Pioneer, Parañaque, Taguig, Las Piñas, Alabang-Muntinlupa, Binondo, and Manila will open on Saturdays in March.
These SSS branches will accept all transactions except tellering services from 8:00am until 5:00pm.
Regino added that SSS branches in Metro Manila would also augment their current workforce with additional personnel from the main office. This will allow more counter personnel to address the high volume of transacting members going to the branches daily.
Moreover, Regino directed the agency’s information technology department to beef up their digital platforms so that members could have the option of conducting their transactions online and avoid queueing at SSS branches.
He also encouraged SSS members and stakeholders to conduct their transactions through digital platforms, such as My.SSS and the SSS Mobile App.
“Since March 2020, we have managed to shift the majority of our over-the-counter transactions to the My.SSS and SSS Mobile App platforms. These have allowed thousands of members to conduct their transactions 24/7 from the comfort of their homes,” Regino added.