RA 997: Reorganization Act of 1954

Section 11.

1. Officers and employees whose positions are abolished or who may be separated or removed from the service as a consequence of the reorganization provided in this Act shall not lose their civil service eligibility for a period of ten years from the date of their separation or removal from the service, nor their right to any existing gratuity or to any gratuity that the Congress may provide. In the event that any government office needs the services of additional personnel, preference in the appointment shall be given to the officers or employees who may be separated or removed from the service as a result of this reorganization and in accordance with the recommendation of the Commission on Civil Service.

  1. Whenever the Commission, after study and investigation finds that it is necessary to reduce personnel, it shall, in laying off employees, observe the following:

    1. Assign the duties performed by any employee laid-off to any other employee or employees in the office involved holding positions in appropriate classes;

    2. Consider the relative seniority of the employees in the designated organization and occupational units where a reduction of personnel is to be made. Except as otherwise provided in this Act, in determining seniority, one point shall be allowed for each complete month of full time service with the government. The Commission shall provide by rule: (a) the extent to which seniority credits may be granted for less than full time service; (b) the basis for determining the sequence of layoff whenever the class and subdivision of layoff includes employees whose service is less than full time; (c) the basis on which seniority credit may be combined for employees who have served in the National Government, the government corporations, the provincial governments, municipalities, and cities; (d) the method by which ties in seniority credit shall be broken; and (e) such other matters as are necessary or advisable for the operation of the provisions of this Act;

    3. Whenever some positions and/or offices of a group of similar positions and/or offices, are to be abolished those occupied by non-civil service eligibles shall be first abolished. Where an office or position now occupied by a civil service eligible is abolished or consolidated with another office or position, the occupant thereof shall be given preference in the appointment to any new office or position created under the reorganization plan contemplated in this Act. This must be adhered to whenever the eligibility and previous training of said occupant qualifies him for appointment to the new position or office created;

    4. An employee compensated on a monthly basis shall be notified that he is to be laid off thirty days prior to the effective date of the layoff. An employee compensated on a per diem basis shall be notified that he is to be laid off fifteen days prior to the effective date of the layoff;

    5. When notices of layoff have been issued, the Commission shall immediately render to the Bureau of Civil Service a report containing the names and seniority credits of all employees in the unit affected by the layoff, with a designation of the names of those laid off. The names of employees laid off shall be placed upon a reemployment list for the appropriate occupational and organization unit in which such layoff occurred. The list shall be arranged in the order of the employees' seniority. All employees who were holding permanent positions at the time they were laid off shall be ranked ahead of employees whose status was temporary;

    6. An employee whose name appears on the reemployment list shall have a prior right to appointment to any vacancy which occurs and for which he may be justified in the organization unit in which he was employed at the time the layoff occurred. Appointments shall be made from the reemployment list in the order in which names appear on the list. When the judgment of the Commission, or the Commissioner of Civil Service when the Commission had completed its work and is therefore no longer existing, no person on the reemployment list possesses the necessary training, experience, or professional qualifications for the vacancy to be filled, an exception may be made and an appointment made from among persons who are not on the reemployment list;

    7. The salary of a person reappointed from the reemployment list shall be the same as that he was paid prior to his layoff: Provided, That if there has been a general adjustment of salaries of government employees during the period of his layoff, he may receive a salary corresponding to what he would have received had he not been laid off: And provided further, That if he accepts a kind of position other than that from which he was laid off, he shall receive the salary appropriate for entrance to the new position.