• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The provincial government of Negros Occidental terminated the job contracts of 20 employees for tardiness and absences, among other reasons.
Provincial Administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz yesterday said the termination of contracts of 20 Job Order and Contract of Service employees, for lack of dedication to their work, was recommended by their respective department heads.
Diaz said the termination of JO and COS employees was not an immediate decision, stressing that they were accorded due process, with evaluations having been made in a collective manner.
“We are doing it in the most humane and compassionate way. We have given them a chance to mend their ways,” Diaz also said.
They were given chances to reform, and “to prove their worth and their value to their organization,” he added.
“If they fail to meet the standards that we set, we have to discipline them and tell them, that their time to prove that they are worthy part of the organization under the administration of Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson has expired. Chances also expire,” Diaz stressed.
“We can’t just hire them out of mere compassion. Others who are really working will also be affected. They may think that it is okay to lazy and timid at the workplace. That’s not the message that the governor wants to send to employees,” he added.
Diaz also announced that the provincial government is hiring replacements.
“We have to give a chance to the new batch of applicants who are willing to work for the good of the province and its people,” he added.
The provincial government has about 2,000 job order and COS employees.*
