PAGCOR to standardize salaries

In a long-awaited development, employees of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) are poised to witness a synchronization of their salaries with other Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GOCCs). This follows the commitment made by the Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG) to issue an Authority to Implement (ATI) for PAGCOR’s new Compensation and Position Classification System (CPCS).

PAGCOR’s Chairman and CEO, Alejandro H. Tengco, revealed that the GCG’s commitment to implement the CPCS was communicated during a meeting between the GCG and PAGCOR’s Compliance Department and Human Resources and Development Group on December 1, 2023.

GCG Commissioner Atty. Geraldine Berberabe-Martinez confirmed this development in a recent media interview, stating that the Commission is likely to issue the Authority to Implement by January 31, 2024.

The GCG, tasked with regulating and supervising government-owned and controlled corporations, had issued Memorandum Circular No. 2015-04 in 2015, mandating the reorganization and rationalization of personnel as a prerequisite for any reorganization and pay increase in GOCCs. President Benigno Aquino III subsequently adopted the CPCS for all GOCCs, including PAGCOR, through Executive Order No. 203.

However, during the Duterte administration, Executive Order No. 36 in July 2017 suspended the CPCS, allowing GOCCs to choose between a modified salary structure or retaining the existing compensation framework. PAGCOR opted for the latter.

Executive Order No. 150, issued later by President Duterte, reinstated the CPCS and the Index of Occupational Services, Position Titles, and Job Grades for GOCCs, effective October 5, 2021. PAGCOR submitted the necessary requirements in November 2021 to obtain CPCS approval.

In June 2022, during the final month of the Duterte administration, GCG conducted an onsite validation at PAGCOR and discovered unauthorized departments, including the E-Sabong Licensing Department, leading to further delays in the CPCS approval.

Upon assuming leadership at PAGCOR in August 2022, Mr. Tengco inquired about the status of the agency’s CPCS, learning that it was still under evaluation. Subsequently, he directed PAGCOR Corporate Secretary and Compliance Officer, Atty. Leoncio Joel Barrameda III, to collaborate with the GCG and expedite the approval process, initiating discussions in December 2022. After a year of negotiations, the GCG conveyed to PAGCOR on December 1, 2023, its intention to issue an ATI for PAGCOR’s CPCS on or before January 31, 2024.

As the regulator for the Philippine gaming industry, it is necessary to have transparency and checks and balances. When there is public confidence in the regulatory agency, then it will translated well to gaining confidence in the PAGCOR licensed operators as well.

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