WHAT IS THE RATIONALIZATION PLAN (RAT PLAN)?

The Rationalization Program was mandated for government agencies in October 2004 through Executi e Or!er (EO) "## The goal is to improve the quality and efficiency of government services Offices will be reorganized to do this HOW WILL THE RAT PLAN I$PA%T THE OR&ANIZATION? The new structure is process-oriented, meaning, offices are there to perform specific functions E ! "EE, "#E, and "$%# have been reorganized to form the "ureau of &urriculum 'evelopment and "ureau of %earning 'elivery

The new structure also ta(es into account changes in the 'epEd)s strategic directions and technology *+&T, 'RR,, etc-. WHO ARE IN%L'(E( IN THE RAT PLAN? &entral Office, Regional Offices, 'ivision office /Proper &asual )*! &ontractualEmployees funded under 0$$-P# with appointment attested by &#& NOT i*c+u!e!, Schoo+-. (e/E!0AR$$. Att)che! Age*cie-. %OS (&AA0$OOE). )*! %OS (1oreig*01u*!e!) WHAT (OES IT $EAN TO 2E A33E%TE(? $ffected means that their current position is not in the new structure OR there are fewer items provided in the new structure $ll affected employees are provided options, whether they want to remain in government service or retire1be separated with benefits WHAT ARE THE OPTIONS 3OR A33E%TE( E$PLO4EES? Re5)i* i* go er*5e*t -er ice Ex/re-- i*te*t to be /+)ce! i* ) co5/)r)b+e /o-itio* )*! go through the /+)ce5e*t /roce- +f the employee is qualified, he1she may be placed in a comparable position within the same 2ob group with same #alary 0rade *#0. or up to 3 #0 levels higher +t means they might change their position or 2ob title or office but will still be wor(ing for 'epEd using their s(ills1(nowledge %o* ert ite5 to%o0Ter5i*u- 6ith the I*cu5be*t (%TI) -t)tu &T+ status is still a RE&'LAR plantilla item- Employees who choose &T+ will retain their salary grade and ran(, and are still entitled to the government benefits attached to their position *e cept for those given due to performance of specific functions i-e- R$T$ for the division chief. +t means they can choose to ho+! o* to their ite5 u*ti+ the7 choo-e to retire. re-ig*. or get )//oi*te! to )*other /o-itio* They will be assigned to where their services and s(ills are needed 4or those interested to apply for the new or higher vacant positions, they can also choose &T+ status while applying for new positions in the new structure- +f they get appointed, the old item will be abolished- +n the event that they don)t get appointed, they can retain the &T+ status Retire5e*t 8 -e/)r)tio* u*!er EO "## +t means they choose not to wor( for government anymore- They will get 5ore be*e1it- th)* regu+)r retire5e*t or -e/)r)tio*, meaning aside from what they would have gotten from 0#+#, they will also get additional incentives from government *through '",. under EO 355 4or employees choosing this option, they cannot be appointed to a regular position in government agencies for the ne t 6 years *e cept in hospitals or public schools. 7T$8E 9OTE! 4or regular employees holding plantilla items! 9o one will lose their ran( or position level 9o one will be forced to retire- +t is voluntary 9o one will be forced out or retrenched from the organization 4or the casual and contractual employees! &ontracts of casual and contractual employees are e tended beyond 'ec :6 with approval from '",

DepEds rationalization plan to displace thousands of employees

December 16, 2013 7:25 pm

@e said the rationalization plan will immediately displace all 'epEd)s contractual, casual and even those who are under the 2ob order scheme by 'ecember 3:, while the regular employees will choose to have between early retirement1separation or stay in the government service and have their permanent status converted into coterminus with the incumbent status=This is a blatant attac( on the security of tenure of the ran( and file employeesThere is no truth to the claim of the government that these employees or their positions are not needed because the education sector is evidently under staffed right now- The education sector even needs more,> he addedThe group also dared 'epartment of Education 9ational Employees) ?nion *'epEd9E?. president lawyer 'omingo $lidon to come out in the open and show that he sincerely protect the welfare of the employees#ought for comment, $lidon said the 'epEd national employees) union is supporting the rationalization plan but denied that there will be a massive layoff of employees=The rationalization in the government bureaucracy is good- +t)s not true that there will be a massive layoff of personnel,> $lidon said=$ll affected employees have options on their own choices - - - at most they could be a co-terminus to their requirements, meaning, they will report and wor( as employee until they retire so nobody will be layoff,> he added 'epEd! 9o mass lay-off under rationalization program "A BEE A- 0ERO9+,O
POSTED ON 12/19/2013 7:50 PM | UPDATED 12/19/2013 10:11 PM

O;ER :<, <<< employees of the 'epartment of Education *'epEd., particularly non-teaching staff, may lose their 2obs once the agency)s =rationalization plan> will be implemented, according to the militant teachers) group $lliance of &oncerned Teachers *$&T.$&T national president "en2ie ;albuena said 'epEd)s rationalization plan will result to the massive layoff of thousands non-teaching staff, e cept from the $utonomous Region in ,uslim ,indanao *$R,,., nationwide$ handful of T'& members pic(eted ,onday in front of the 'epEd central office in Pasig &ity to denounce the planned massive lay off of non-teaching personnel%ast wee(, the education department, as pursuant to the implementation of rationalization plan as mandated by E ecutive Order 355, issued 'epEd Order 9o- 63 to the affected employees which state that a new system of staffing will be implemented to its central office units, regional offices, school division offices, e cluding 'epEd-$R,,?nder the new system, employees whose items will be affected by the rationalization plan may choose between remaining in government service and availing of the retirement or separation incentives=E ecutive Order 355 ordered all departments under the e ecutive branch of the government to conduct strategic review of its operations and organization- This order resulted for massive displacement among other government agencies already- 4or the education department, it will stri(e down employees in the central office down to the regional and division offices,> ;albuena stressed-

MANILA, Philippines Contrary to reports that thousands will lose their jobs, the rationalization program approved by the Department of Education (DepEd) may, on the contrary, even usher in the hiring of new people, officials said. On Thursday, December 19, DepEd Undersecretary for Regional Operations Rizalino Rivera and Assistant Secretary for Planning Jesus Mateo clarified that the rationalization will affect 9,700 items, not necessarily people. Some of the items are actually vacant.

"Wala pong malawakan at sapilitang pagtatanggal ng mga tao sa trabaho sa DepEd (There is no mass and forced resignation of people who work in DepEd)," Rivera said. The department made public DepEd Order No. 53 on December 3, specifying the step by step process of the rationalization program. It was a program mandated in October 2004 through Executive Order 366, which the DepEd revisited in December 2011 "in light of long-term reforms needed in the education sector notwithstanding fast-changing demands of the local and global environment." The EO prohibited the hiring and rehiring of personnel during plan preparation, which explains the vacant items. But the situation is different on the ground, where more teachers and non-teaching staff are actually needed. Improve process flows Rivera said the reorganization is being implemented to improve the delivery of services because the department's current structure from the central office down to the schools is "not a flow." Mateo said the current structure is based on sector, not function. "Minsan yung pangangailangan hindi nakokonekta agad sa susunod na level...Of course 'no, kailangan mag-adjust ng lahat, but ultimately we think it will be good, down to the good of our children," Rivera said. (Sometimes the needs are not connected immediately to the next level...Of course everyone needs to adjust, but ultimately we think it will be good, down to the good of our children.) For example, the Bureau of Elementary Education, Bureau of Secondary Education, and the Bureau of Alternative Learning

System under the new structure will be reorganized so the process flow will strengthen the services of human resources. A more timely example is the plan to strengthen the newly-created Disaster Risk Reduction Office of DepEd so it can respond and focus on the effects of disaster on education. "We created a lot of offices, and a lot of positions will be open to applicants," Rivera said. The first phase of the program was approved by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on November 15, covering only the following offices:

Central Office Regional Offices Schools Division Offices Casual and Contractual Employees funded under GAA-Personnel Services (with appointment attested by the Civil Service Commission)

"All employees at the school level and DepEd-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao offices are excluded in the DepEd Rationalization Program," the department's order said. Employees with affected items may opt to either apply for other positions at DepEd or retire from government service with higher-than-usual benefits. "Kung gusto po nila manatili sa DepEd, [pwedeng] mag-apply sa bagong position sa bagong struktura (If they want to stay in DepEd, they may apply for a new position in the new structure)," Rivera said. The co-terminus option The other option for those who want to remain in government service is to apply for a Co-Terminus with the Incumbent (CTI) status.

He explained what the CTI means. "Di sila mawawalan ng trabaho, pareho pa rin ang sweldo, may benepisyo, hanggang sa panahon na sila mismo ang magdesisyon na magresign sa DepEd o magretire.(They won't lose their job, they will get the same income, with benefits, until they decide to resign from DepEd or retire)." The department clarified this option does not mean the employee is co-terminus with the appointing authority nor is it only for a period of one year. "Napaka-gradual na pagbabago. So kung 40 years old ako ngayon at nag-opt ako ng CTI, 'yung item na yun, sa akin hanggang magretire ako. I keep that item (The change is very gradual. If I'm 40 years old now and I opt for the CTI, that item is mine until I retire. I keep that item.)," he added. "Kung na-promote na ako, siyempre ibang item na hawak ko, 'yung item na hinawakan ko [dati] mawawala na 'yun (If I'm promoted, I'll be handling a different item, the item I used to handle will be abolished)." Meanwhile, those who want to retire from government service will get more benefits than regular retirement or separation. They will receive additional incentives on top of that from the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS). The minimum amount an employee can receive is P50,000. Affected employees were given up to two months or until Jan 15, 2014, to submit their preferred option. Regular vs contractual The department listed down in a brief the different effects of the program on regular employees holding plantilla items and on casual and contractual employees.

Regular:

No one will lose their rank or position level. No one will be forced to retire. It is voluntary. No one will be forced out or retrenched from the organization.

Casual and contractual: Contracts are extended beyond December 15 with approval from DBM. The DepEd order stated casual or contractual items in the agency will be abolished pursuant to the rationalization program. The services of these employees 225 nationwide and 47 from the central office, according to Rivera were supposed to be terminated last December 15, but Education Secretary Armin Luistro instructed Rivera to "take care of our people" and ask for an extension from DBM. Rivera said he already explained the program to Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) national president Benjie Valbuena when they staged a protest against the reorganization earlier this week, and Valbuena "was surprised that's how it works." "Siya mismo nagmungkahi [na] umikot [kami] sa labas, makipag-usap sa mga tao (He himself suggested that we go out and talk to people," he said, adding he already talked with employees from the division office of Quezon City. ACT secretary general France Castro in a press release on Wednesday said while they welcome Rivera's "pronouncement" to seek "DBM's approval for the cancellation of the implementation of the plan," scrapping the entire program is the "most humane and just [thing] to do." "If ever a rationalization plan is to be implemented, this plan should result into additional regular items for the department and not for its reduction so as to resolve the deficit of personnel in the department especially in the school level. Nonteaching personnel are of crucial role in the education sector. Without them, we, the teachers, cannot deliver our work smoothly and accordingly," she added.