Section 13Sec./Art. 13

Retirement Benefits and Separation Incentives for Personnel Who May be Affected by the GOP. - The affected personnel hired on a permanent basis and with appointments attested by the CSC shall be entitled to retirement benefits and separation incentives.

(a) Qualified affected personnel shall be given the option to avail of any of the following retirement benefits under existing laws:

(1) Retirement gratuity provided under Republic Act No. 1616 or "AN Act Further Amending Section Twelve of Commonwealth Act Numbered One Hundred Eighty-Six, as Amended, By Prescribing Two Other Modes of Retirement, and for Other Purposes", as amended;

(2) Retirement benefit under Republic Act No. 660 or "An Act to Amend Commonwealth Act Numbered One Hundred and Eighty-Six Entitled 'An Act to Create and Establish a Government Service Insurance System, to Provide for its Administration, and to Appropriate the Necessary Funds Therefor,' and to Provide Retirement Insurance and for Other Purposes"; or

(3) Retirement, separation, or unemployment provided under Republic Act No. 8291, or "An Act Amending Presidential Decree No. 1146, as Amended, Expanding and Increasing the Coverage and Benefits of the Government Service Insurance System, Instituting Reforms Therein and for Other Purposes"; Provided, That affected personnel shall have a minimum of five (5) years of government service to avail of the separation benefits provided under this Act. The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) shall formulate guidelines on the grant of separation or unemployment benefits to affected personnel.

Qualified affected personnel availing the benefits under Republic Act No. 1616 shall be entitled to a refund of retirement premiums consisting of both personal and government shares, to be paid by the GSIS. The personnel shall be given the option to avail either the retirement gratuity benefit provided under Republic Act No. 1616 or the separation incentives under Section 13(b) of this Act, which shall be charged against the General Appropriations Act (GAA).

(b) In addition to said retirement benefits, the affected personnel retiring or separated shall be entitled to the following separation incentives as applicable:

(1) One half (1/2) of the actual monthly basic salary for every year of government service, for those who have rendered five (5) to less than eleven (11) years of service;

(2) Three-fourths (3/4) of the actual monthly basic salary for every year of government service, computed starting from the first year, for those who have rendered eleven (11) to less than twenty-one (21) years of service;

(3) The actual monthly basic salary for every year of government service, computed starting from the first year, for those who have rendered twenty-one (21) to less than thirty-one (31) years of service; and

(4) One and one-fourth (1 1/4) of the actual monthly basic salary for every year of government service, computed starting from the first year, for those who have rendered thirty-one (31) years of service and above.

The actual monthly basic salary shall refer to the affected personnel's salary as of the date of approval of the agency's Detailed Optimized OSSP by the DBM:

Provided, That for the purpose of computing the total amount of separation incentives that affected personnel will receive, only the government service rendered up to age fifty-nine (59) and a fraction thereof will be counted. Government service from the age of sixty (60) will no longer be subject to the separation incentives provided therein, without affecting the original incentive factor determined based on the actual years of service of the affected personnel, as applicable:

Provided, further, That to comply with the required number of years of service under Republic Act No. 8291, the portability scheme under Republic Act No. 7699 or "An Act Instituting Limited Portability Scheme in the Social Security Insurance Systems by Totalizing the Workers' Creditable Services or Contributions in Each of the Systems" may be applied, subject to existing policies and guidelines:

Provided, finally, That affected personnel who retired or were separated from the service as a result of the implementation of the GOP shall not be reemployed in any agency of the National Government, including GOCCs, for a period of five (5) years, except in the exigency of service or as teaching or medical staff in educational institutions and hospitals, respectively.

The number of personnel who will avail of separation incentives under Section 13(b) of this Act shall in no case exceed the number of positions declared for abolition.

The specific guidelines to carry out the provisions of this section shall be prescribed in the IRR of this Act.