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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Senator flags BIR, BOC over unfilled positions, low salaries

Senator flags BIR, BOC over unfilled positions, low salaries

Published Oct 3, 2023 03:27 am

 

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has called on the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to fix its issues on unfilled positions and low salaries of personnel.

 

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Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian (Senate PRIB Photo) 

 

 

During the Senate hearing on the proposed budget of the Department of Finance (DOF) and its attached agencies for 2024, Gatchalian noted that the DOF had a total of 11,745 unfilled positions in 2022.


 

Of this number, the BIR had a total of 7,724 unfilled positions while the BOC accounted for 2,761.

 

“This is a huge number considering that the BOC and BIR are tax-collecting agencies,” said Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means.


 

“I would assume that the more people they have, the more efficient that they will become and the more taxes that they can collect,” he pointed out.

 

“We don’t want a scenario wherein our tax-collecting agencies, among the most important government agencies, are being left behind,” the senator lamented.


 

Gatchalian said such situation could lead the agencies’ lawyers and accountants to be engaged in corruption.


 

“There is temptation of corruption if lawyers and accountants receive very low salaries. It's about time to address this,” he stressed.

 

The lawmaker urged the two agencies to submit their suggestions on which positions should be reclassified so it can offer a more attractive compensation package.

 

Because according to BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. and BOC Deputy Commissioner Michael Fermin, the two agencies are having difficulty in hiring personnel such as lawyers and accountants as other agencies offer more competitive compensation packages.


 

Lumagui specified that the entry-level salary for an accountant is P27,000 and the entry-level salary for a lawyer is P46,725 compared to the P51,000 entry level in the Civil Service Commission (CSC).

 

Gatchalian acknowledged that the two agencies do not stand a chance in hiring the best talents if their compensation packages are not even competitive with other government agencies. 

 

“The basic consideration is the salary package. No matter how we improve the process, if the basic attraction or salary is low, then it’s going to be very difficult for government agencies to attract talent,” he said.


 

“This is an enforcement group, and we need to have industry-level packages at least so we can ward off temptations, attract the best talents, and improve credibility and integrity within the office,” he stressed. 

Related Tags

Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Bureau of Customs (BoC) Bureau of Customs Batangas
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