BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Entry-level nurses working in public hospitals and health institutions, or Nurse 1, of the provincial government of Negros Occidental, are expected to enjoy higher pay starting this year.
Based on the memorandum issued by the Department of Budget and Management, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said yesterday that the pay of Nurse 1 has been upgraded from Salary Grade 11 to SG 15.
The latest DBM ruling states that a Nurse 1 is now entitled to a salary ranging from P32,053 to P34,801, from a previous rate of P22,316 to P24,391.
Ironically, the salary grades of Nurse 2, Nurse 3, and Nurse 4 have been downgraded following the effectivity of the DBM memorandum circular.
Lacson admitted that the DBM ruling got a negative reaction from nurses occupying key positions, whose SG levels have been lowered.
Lacson explained that they have no choice but to follow the instructions of DBM.
“They will have to sacrifice for the whole year, because our budget is already per DBM instructions to downgrade. So our budget is reflective of the DBM memorandum,” he said.
During a meeting between Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz and the Human Resource Division, Lacson said that it took a while to convince them.
“For 2021, the SG of Nurse 2 will be downgraded to that of Nurse 1, Nurse 3 to Nurse 2, and Nurse 4 to Nurse 3. But we assure them that in 2022, we will create already the new positions,” Lacson said.
Most likely, they will be the ones to be promoted, he added. “We just have to convince them to do a little sacrifice,” Lacson said.*
