Contract of Service (COS) and Job Order (JO) personnel hired by Eastern Samar province were were not only paid below the daily minimum wage, but worse, their salaries were always delayed in 2023, the Commission on Audit (COA) said.
In its annual audit report, COA said that when the audit team checked the disbursement vouchers (DVs), payrolls, and supporting documents attached to the payments of wages of COS and JO personnel, they discovered delays in the payments of wages.
"The payments of wages of COS/JO personnel were late, depriving them of the timely release of their compensation to support their daily needs and expenses. The elapsed time of processing payrolls and DVs for the payment of COS/JO personnel wages for the period January to November 2023, ranged from six to 279 days, thus causing delayed payment by one day to 263 days," COA said in its report.
It said the province's accounting office explained that the delay was due to late submission of the required supporting documents by the personnel in charge of preparing payrolls, such as Contract of Service and Daily Time Records. However, this was unacceptable to the audit team, it also said.
"The foregoing delay in the payment of wages would ultimately cause undue burden/inconvenience to the CSO/JO personnel, affecting their focus and performance at work," it pointed out.
As if the delays were not bad enough, COA said its audit team even found that wages paid were below the minimum daily rate. For the period of January to April 2023, around 1,923 COS/JO personnel were paid below the minimum daily wage rate of P375.
All the personnel, ranging from those working for the Provincial Health Office to the provincial-paid teachers from various schools, received only P300 as their daily wage, it stressed.
It noted: "The additional compensation could have helped them support their daily needs and expenses. Further, an increase in their wages will also promote an increase in these personnel's morale."
It recommended that the local chief executive direct all officials concerned to streamline the payroll-related process by addressing any problems in the procedure to reduce delays.
It also asked them to comply with the mandated daily minimum wage at rates prescribed by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards in Contracts of Service in the future.