Congressman Michael “Mike” Defensor (Anakalusugan) has vowed to fast-track the grant of permanent status to long-time Quezon City Hall contractual employees if he is elected mayor of the country’s largest city.
“The Quezon City government’s long-time contractual workers deserve to be regularized so that they can enjoy security of tenure and receive allowances as well as bonuses, including the 13th month pay,” Defensor said.
“We are absolutely committed to regularizing them. It would be grossly unfair to continue to deprive them of the benefits of permanent employment,” Defensor said in a statement on Sunday.
“In fact, our sense is, the Quezon City government has been generating huge savings every year partly at the expense of long-time contractual employees who should have been regularized far in the past,” Defensor said.
Defensor is the candidate for Quezon City mayor of former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte Carpio, who are running for president and vice president, respectively.
“In Quezon City, we have many local government-employed day care teachers who have been at their jobs for more than 10 years, and yet they are still under service contracts. This is unacceptable,” Defensor said.
“Our day care teachers serve as second parents. They are indispensable to the early development of our children,” Defensor, House committee on welfare of children vice chairperson, said.
“They and other contractual workers who have been performing essential services for a long time are definitely entitled to permanent status,” Defensor said.
At present, the Quezon City government has 13,376 contractual workers on top of its 6,000 plantilla position employees.
Should they win in the May 9 elections, Defensor and his running mate for vice mayor, Winnie Castelo, previously assured city hall’s contractual employees they would all get to keep their jobs and enjoy improved working conditions
