MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Audit (COA) denied separate petitions filed by two security guards of the J.H. Cerilles State College (formerly Western Mindanao State University) in Zamboanga del Sur seeking overtime pay for the work they rendered sometime between 2009 and 2012.
State auditors said the two petitioners had insufficient documents to back up their claims.
Security guard Dioscoro Maputi retired in July 2011 without seeing any overtime pay, even though he worked 365 days a year from June 2009 to June 2011.
Felix Baculina was in a similar situation, reporting for duty without any day off from June 2009 to December 2012.
Maputi filed a claim of P277,707 including P150,000 in exemplary damages and attorney’s fees, while Baculina asked COA to direct JHCSC to settle his overtime pay of P267,243 and P150,000 exemplary damages plus attorney’s fees.
In its rulings, the COA said daily time records submitted by the security guards were either photocopies or unapproved, and noted that the computations about the claims were not detailed.
“The claim was not substantiated with the required documentation. The petitioner did not submit a certificate of non-payment required under COA Resolution No. 2012-011. This commission emphasizes that it is the duty of the claimant to substantiate his claim for payment,” the COA en banc added.
The exhausting work arrangement for the security guards began after WMSU was integrated to JHCSC, which was when the personnel lost their two-day rest period and forced them to report seven days a week.
Maputi and Baculina sought clarification from the Civil Service Commission (CSC) about the benefits they were entitled to only after their retirement.
In response, the CSC flagged the JHCSC management’s working hours for the security guards, which the commission said ran contrary to the 40-hour work week allotted to government personnel under the Administrative Code of 1987.
In a letter to COA, JHCSC offered to pay out P1.17 million to Maputi, Baculina, and five other retired security personnel grappling with similar predicaments, but state auditors said that under the rules, each security guard must file individual petitions for claim.
The COA said the two security guards may refile their petition once they satisfy the documentary requirements, but added that requests for exemplary damages and legal expenses are outside the agency’s jurisdiction.
State auditors also did not touch on a COA regional director’s recommendation to grant the security guards’ claim under the principle of quantum meruit. – Rappler.com