DepEd lays off casual and contractual workers

MANILA—The Department of Education  has laid off all its casual and contractual employees, while thousands of regular nonteaching personnel will be reassigned if they do not opt to go into early retirement, under the department’s ongoing nationwide reorganization.

The casual and contractual employees were terminated effective Dec. 15, a month after the DepEd’s so-called Rationalization Plan (RatPlan) was approved by the Department of Budget and Management.

The reorganization, which will take place until March next year, will affect employees in the DepEd central office, the 16 regional offices (excluding the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao) and the 206 division offices in cities and provinces.

In a news conference Thursday, Undersecretary for Operations Rizalino Rivera said 9,700 regular items will be affected in the reorganization.

But on Friday, he gave a lower count and said 7,793 regular items are affected.

He said 5,213 items are vacant “thus the net affected are 2,580 items and these staff (members) have the option to be (converted to) coterminous with the incumbent (status) or retire.”

“From the last count, DepED has 225 casual and contractual employees nationwide,” he also claimed.

DepEd laid off all its casual and contractual employees effective last Dec. 15, with the promise that those who qualify may be entitled to a retirement pay depending on the age and years of service.