DOLE increases maternity, death benefits for sugar industry workers
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has increased the maternity and death benefits for workers in the sugar industry under the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) fund.
This, after Labor Secretary Bienvenido E. Laguesma signed DOLE Administrative Order No. 318, expanding the workers’ maternity benefits from P5,000 to P8,000.
The same order increased the death benefit from P10,000 to P14,000.
In the order, Laguesma authorized the release of P6.8 million in additional reserve funds for the maternity benefit program and P11.76 million for the death benefit program for sugar workers.
The authority is granted to the Bureau of Workers with Special Concerns (BWSC).
The additional reserve funds will be distributed to the department’s regional offices in Ilocos Region, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Northern Mindanao, Davao Region and Central Mindanao.
On the other hand, each of the DOLE Regional Offices in Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Davao, and Central Mindanao, as well as the DOLE Provincial Office in Iloilo, would get an additional P400,000 in reserve funds.
DOLE Cagayan Valley, meanwhile, would receive P640,000 for 80 maternity benefit claims; DOLE Negros Occidental would receive P2.24 million for 280 maternity benefit claims; and DOLE Northern Mindanao would receive P720,000 for 90 maternity benefit claims from additional reserve funds.
The DOLE provincial/regional offices in Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Bicol, Iloilo, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Northern Mindanao, Davao, and Central Mindanao were given the right to release P700,000, a sum equal to 50 death benefit claims.
For DOLE Calabarzon, an additional P1.26 million in reserve funds will be released to cover 90 death benefit claims whereas for DOLE Negros Occidental, P4.2 million will be released to cover 300 death benefit claims.
According to the agency, the SAP's socio-economic project component receives 20 percent of the collected lien. (Trixee Rosel)