ACT TEACHERS Partylist Rep. France Castro on Tuesday slammed the Department of Education for releasing a memorandum on pay cuts instead of giving teachers their overtime pay.

Castro said that DepEd Order No. 56 presented a deceitful computation of teachers’ proportional vacation pay which is actually an order for the deductions on teachers’ vacation pay.

“Nauna pang inilabas ng DepEd ang kanyang computation kung paano kakaltasan ang sweldo ng mga guro sa panahon ng bakasyon sa bawat limang araw na absent noong pasukan kaysa sa paglabas ng guidelines para sa overtime pay at service credit na matagal nang demand ng ating mga guro,” she said.

The lawmaker stressed that the DepEd owes teachers overtime pay and service credits for the work they rendered in the 13-month-long school year.

“Hanggang ngayon, wala pa rin ang ipinangakong guidelines tungkol sa overtime pay at service credit at inuna pa ang paglabas ng computation ng pagkakaltas sa sweldo,” she added.

The group said that teachers receive PVP during school break, a counterpart leave benefit for lack of sick leave and vacation leave credits accorded to other government workers.

It explained that PVP usually operates on a calendar year framework wherein the year is divided between the number of actual days served and the number of days for Christmas break plus school break.

Castro said DepEd cheated in its computation by not taking into consideration the 13-month-long pandemic school year.

The group said teachers served for a total of 389 days in the last school year as compared to less than 300 days in previous years.

“Ang mga public school teachers na nga ang mga abonado sa pagbili ng mga kagamitan para sa blended distance learning, abonado pa sa panahon at lakas sa pagseserbisyo dahil ang overtime na serbisyo na kanilang ibinigay bilang mga education frontliners ay naging ‘offer time’ na lang. Kakaltasan pa ng sweldo sa panahon ng bakasyon sa bawat limang araw na absent nila noong pasukan,” Castro added.

“Wala na ngang tunay na bakasyon ang mga guro dahil sa napakaraming ipinagagawang paperworks at additional tasks ng DepEd sa mula noong opisyal na nagsara ang nakaraang pandemic school year, kakaltasan pa sila sa sweldo,” she stressed.

Castro said she will file a resolution to probe these issues. She also urged DepEd to immediately release the guidelines for teachers’ service credits and overtime pay in the past pandemic school year and recall DepEd Memo No. 56.