MANILA — The Commission on Audit (COA) flagged the Senate in its 2025 annual audit report for disbursing overtime compensation to employees who failed to complete the mandatory 40-hour workweek.
State auditors discovered that Senate personnel received overtime pay despite logging less than the required minimum of two hours of extra service mandated by joint regulations from the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
Under CSC-DBM Joint Circular No. 02, series of 2015, overtime compensation applies to work extended beyond the standard eight-hour workday, a full 40-hour workweek, or approved shifts on rest days and holidays, provided employees complete at least two hours of authorized overtime.
The audit revealed that the Senate continued implementing an outdated policy—Policy Order No. 96-012—which permitted overtime claims for extra work lasting only 30 minutes or more. This misalignment was further complicated by the chamber’s compressed four-day workweek schedule, requiring 10 daily work hours.
According to COA, absences incurred during this compressed schedule resulted in workers failing to fulfill the full 40-hour requirement, yet they still qualified for overtime remuneration. Auditors noted that this recurrent inconsistency had previously been raised with Senate management, who were advised to align internal regulations with national policies.
In response, Senate management stated that revisions to the internal guidelines are currently drafted and undergoing review. A former Senate Secretary also released an advisory in November 2024 to outline rules on compensatory time off while awaiting official policy adjustments.
Because the revised policy remains unapproved, the chamber’s conflicting internal standards persisted throughout 2025.
COA strongly advised Senate management to fast-track the finalization of the updated framework to reflect the legislative office’s unique scheduling structure while strictly adhering to overarching CSC-DBM standards, a recommendation that Senate officials accepted.