DEPDev Essentials: What you Need to Know

• Working Days: Monday to Friday

• Working Hours: 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM 

Employees may report for work as early as 7:00 AM and leave the office as late as 7:00 PM, except every Monday and Thursday.

• Employees are required to attend the flag raising every Monday at 8:00 AM and flag lowering ceremony every Thursday at 5:00 PM.

• Beyond 8:05 AM is considered tardy during Mondays.

• Flexiplace is observed every Friday. 

• For more information, access the DEPDEv VIII Flexible Work Arrangement Guidelines (updated as of 2026)

• DEPDev VIII core working hours is from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM.

• Log in beyond 9:31 AM will be considered late/tardy and log out before 4:00 PM will be considered undertime.

• Employees are entitled to a period of time for lunch, 12:00 NN to 1:00 PM, but not to exceed 1 hour.

• Log-out in the morning and log-in in the afternoon are required.

• However, all clients who are within office premises prior to the end of official working hours are attended to and served even during lunch break.

Grave Offense Penalty:

First Offense: Suspension of 6  months and 1 day to 1 year

Second Offense: Dismissal from the service

Light Offense Penalty:

First Offense: Reprimand

Second Offense: Suspension of 1 to 30 days

Third Offense: Dismissal from service

Grave Offense Penalty:

First Offense: Suspension of 6  months and 1 day to 1 year

Second Offense: Dismissal from the service

Grave Offense Penalty:

First Offense: Suspension of 6  months and 1 day to 1 year

Second Offense: Dismissal from the service

• Employees will earn 0.042 vacation and sick leave credits each day of actual service or 1.25 vacation and sick leave credits for every 30 days of actual service. Vacation and sick leave shall be cumulative and any part thereof which may not be taken within the calendar year may be carried over to the succeeding years.

• Failure to follow the working schedule will lead to the deduction of leave credits. Tardiness and undertime are deducted from vacation leave credits and shall not be charged against sick credits, unless the undertime is for health reasons supported by medical certificate and application for leave.

• 1 minute of tardiness or undertime is equivalent to 0.002 day and 1 hour of it is equivalent to 0.125 day

• Sick leave is granted only on account of sickness or disability on the part of the employee or any member of the immediate family. 

• All applications for sick leave of absence for 1 full day or more shall be made on the prescribed form and shall be filed immediately upon return from such leave. Notice of absence, however, should be sent to the immediate supervisor and/or to the agency head. 

• Application in excess of 5 successive days shall be accompanied by a proper medical certificate.

• In ordinary application for sick leave already taking not exceeding 5 days, the head of agency may duly determine whether or not granting of sick leave is proper under the circumstances. In case of doubt, a medical certificate may be required.

• Vacation leave is a leave of absence granted to official or employees for personal reasons, the approval of which is contingent upon the necessities of the service.

• All applications for vacation leave of absence for 1 full day or more shall be submitted on the prescribed form for action by the proper head of agency 5 days in advance, whenever possible, of the effective date of such leave.

• Leave of absence for any reason other than illness of an official or employee or any member of his immediate family must be contingent upon the needs of the service. Hence, the grant of vacation leave shall be at the discretion of the head of agency.

• Special Privilege Leave is a leave of absence which officials and employees may avail of for a maximum of 3 days annually over and above the vacation, sick, maternity and paternity leaves to mark personal milestones and/or attend to filial and domestic responsibilities.

• The leave is subject to the following conditions: 

a) Personal milestones such as birthdays/wedding/wedding anniversary celebrations and other similar milestones, including death anniversaries

b) Parental obligations such as attendance in school programs, PTA meetings, graduations, first communion, medical needs, among others, where a child of the government employee is involved

c) Filial obligations to cover the employee's moral obligation toward his parents and siblings for their medical and social needs

d) Domestic emergencies such as sudden urgent repairs needed at home, sudden absence of a yaya or maid, and the like.

e) Personal transactions to cover the entire range of transactions an individual does with government and private offices such as paying taxes, court appearances, arranging a house loan, etc.

f) Calamity, accident, hospitalization leave pertain to force majeure events that affect the life, limb, and property of the employee or his immediate family

• The leave is non-cumulative and non-commutative. It shall be filed 1 week prior to its availment except on emergency cases.

• Officials and employees shall be entitled to 5 days of Wellness Leave per year, available from the date of assumption of duty. The Wellness Leave shall be separate and exclusive from the 15 days Vacation Leave, 15 days of Sick Leave, and 3 days Special Privilege Leave.

• The Wellness Leave may be taken either: a) consecutively for a maximum of 3 days at a time, or b) on separate, non-consecutive days. It may be availed of for purposes including, but not limited to mental health care, physical wellness activities, or general break from work.

• The applications for Wellness Leave shall be filed at least 5 days before its availment, except in emergency cases wherein it must be filed immediately upon the personnel's return from such leave.

• The Wellness Leave shall be non-cumulative, non-commutable to its monetary equivalent, and forfeited if not availed within the calendar year.

• Officials and employees with 10 days or more vacation leave credits shall be required to go on vacation whether continuous or intermittent for a minimum of 5 working days annually under the following conditions:

a. The head of agency shall, upon prior consultation with the employees, prepare a staggered schedule of the mandatory 5-day vacation leave of officials and employees, provided that he may, in the exigency of the service, cancel any previously scheduled leave

b. The mandatory annual 5-day vacation leave shall be forfeited if not taken during the year. However, in cases where the scheduled leave has been cancelled in the exigency of the service by the head of agency, the scheduled leave not enjoyed shall no longer be deducted from the total accumulate vacation leave

c. Retirement and resignation from the service in a particular year without completing the calendar year do no warrant forfeiture of the corresponding leave credits if concerned employees opted not to avail of the required 5-day mandatory vacation leave

d. Those with accumulated vacation leave of less than 10 days shall have the option to go on forced leave or not. However, officials and employees with accumulated vacation leave of 15 days who availed of monetization for 10 days shall still be required to go on forced leave

• Rehabilitation leave is application of officials and employees for leave of absence on account of wounds or injuries incurred in the performance of duty supported by the proper medical certificate and evidence showing that the wounds or injuries were incurred in the performance of duty.

• The absence of the employee during his/her period of disability shall be on full pay, but not to exceed 6 months.

• Every female employee in the government service, regardless of her civil status, employment status, lenght of service and legitimacy of the child, in addition to her vacation and sick leave credits earned, shall be granted 105 days maternity leave with full pay for live childbirth regardless of the mode of delivery, whether normal or caesarian.

• For cases of miscarriage or emergency termination of pregnancy, maternity leave of 60 days with full pay shall be granted.

• Prior notice shall be given on the pregnancy and the availment of maternity leave at least 30 days in advance.

• Maternity leave shall be granted in every instance of pregnancy regardless of frequency.

• A female employee may avail of the option to allocate upt to 7 days of her maternity leave to the child's father, whether or not she is married to him. The allocated leave is over and above the 7-day leave benefit under RA 8187 or the Paternity Leave Act of 1996.

• Every married male employee in the government service shall be entitled to paternity leave of 7 working days with full pay for the 1st 4 deliveries, whether childbirth or miscarriage, of his legitimate spouse with whom he is cohabiting.

• It shall not be non-cumulative and strictly non-convertible to cash.

Study leave is a time off from work with pay for the purpose of assisting qualified employees to prepare for their bar or board exams or to complete their masteral degree. It is covered by a contract between the beneficiary and the agency head.

Terminal leave is the money value of the total accumulated leave credits of an employee based on the highest salary received prior to or upon retirement date/voluntary separation.

An employee still on probationary period may already avail of whatever leave credits he/she has rendered during said period. Accordingly, any leave of absence without pay incurred during the period of probation shall extend the completion thereof for the same number of days of such absence.

• Leave without pay not exceeding one year may be granted, in addition to vacation and/or sick leave earned.

• Leave without pay in excess of 1 month shall require clearance

Whenever the application for leave of absence, including terminal leave, is not acted upon by the head of agency or his duly authorized representative within 5 working days after receipt thereof, the application for leave of absence shall be deemed approved.

Where an official or an employee fails to report for work on a regular day for which suspension of work is declared after the start of regular working hours, he shall not be considered absent on that day. Instead, he shall only be deducted leave credits or the amount corresponding to the time when official working hours start up to the time the suspension of work is announced.

When an official or employee transfer from one government agency to another, he can either have his accumulated vacation and/or sick leave credits commuted or transferred to his new agency. The second option can be exercised as a matter of right only by an employee who does not have gaps in his service. However, a gap of not more than 1 month may be allowed provided same is due not to his fault. The option to transfer accumulated leave credits can be exercised within 1 year only from the employee's transfer to the new agency.

An employee who is absent without prior approved leave shall not be entitled to receive his salary corresponding to the period of his/her unauthorized leave of absence. It is understood, however, that his absence shall no longer be deducted from his accumulated leave credits.

• An employee who is continuously absent without approved leave for at least 30 calendar days shall be considered AWOL and shall be separated from the service.

• If the number of unauthorized absences is less than 30 calendar days, a written Report-to-Work Order shall be served at the last known address on record. Failure to report for work within the period stated in the orded shall be a valid ground to drop the employee from the rolls.

a. If you render greater than or equal to 40 hours of work in a week, only the total number of hours corresponding to the period of tardiness/undertime during the core hours shall be deducted from your leave credits/salary.

b. If you report to work within the core hours and did not complete the 40-hour work requirement in a week, the deficiency in required hours of work shall be deducted from your leave credits/salary.

c. If you render less than the required 40 hours of work in a week and incurred tardiness/undertime during the core hours, the total number of hours of deficiency in the required hours of work or corresponding period of tardiness/undertime shall be deducted from your credits/salary, whichever is the longer period

• AWOL shall be a ground for dismissal from service after due notice. However, when the exigency of service require your immediate presence and you fail/refuse to return to Office, the Regional Director may drop you from the service even prior to the expiration of the 30 day period

• 1 day unauthorized absences is also considered as AWOL, except, if you have notified your Division Chief of your inability to report through the fastest means of communication.​

• To facilitate the review and monitoring of employee performance, the performance targets and work output standards shall be set, agreed upon and duly signed by the Division Chief, and the Regional Director within 5 days upon assumption to duty using the Individual Performance Commitment and Review (IPCR) Form.

• The performance evaluation shall be done at least twice during the probationary period and within every 3 months

At the end of the performance period, performances from Office and Division levels down to individual level are reviewed against targets using SPMS Forms 2, 3, and 4, respectively.

For more information, access the DEPDev VIII Strategic Performance Management System (SPMS) Guidelines

In applying for overtime, you shall have rendered not less than 8 hours of work a day for 5 days a week or a total of 40 hours a week, exclusive of time for lunch. You shall not render overtime for more than 2 consecutive nights for health reasons and to ensure productivity.

To apply, access the Processes Page.

CTO refers to the number of hours or days you are excused from reporting for work with full pay and benefits. It is a non-monetary benefit provided to you in lieu of overtime pay

• Employees may avail the CTO in blocks of 4 or 8 hours. It may be used continuously up to a maximum of 5 consecutive days per single availment, or on staggard basis within the year

• To avail a CTO, you must earn Compensatory Overtime Credits, which refers to the accrued number of hours earned a result of overtime services. To apply, access the Process Page.

Overtime pay is subject to availability of office's funds at the end of every fiscal year.

Submit the duly-accomplished SALN form on or before January 31 of every year thereafter (internal guidelines for DEPDev VIII)

For more information, access the SALN Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Submit the duly-accomplished Personal Data Sheet on or before January 30 of every year thereafter.

For more information, access the Guide to Fill Up the PDS Form.

Salary for the month shall be credited 4 times: 7th, 15th, 21st and 30th day of the month.

Monthly allowance amounting to P2,000.00.

Bonus equivalent to 1 month basic pay given not earlier than May 15 of every year.

Bonus equivalent to 1 month basic pay given not earlier than November 15 of every year.

Incentive granted up to P30,000.00 at the end of the year subject to availability of funds.

Bonus granted up to 50% of the basic monthly salary based on actual performance.

The following grave offenses shall be punishable by dismissal from the service:

a. Being notoriously undesirable

b. Contracting loans of money or other property from persons with whom the office of the employee has business relations

c. Conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude

d. Disloyalty to the Republic of the Philippines and to the Filipino people

e. Falsification of official document

f. Grave misconduct

g. Grave sexual harassment

h. Gross neglect of duty

i. Nepotism

j. Physical or mental disorder or disability due to immoral or vicious habits

k. Receiving of personal use of a fee, gift or other valuable thing in the course of official duties or in connection therewith when such fee, gift or other valuable thing is given by any person in the hope or expectation of receiving a favor or better treatment that that accorded to other persons, or committing acts punishable under the anti-graft laws

l. Serious dishonesty

m. Soliciting or accepting, directly or indirectly, any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan, or anything of monetary value in the course of one's official duties or in connection with any operation being regulated by, or any transaction which may be affected by the functions of one's office.

The following grave offenses shall be punishable by suspension of 6 months and 1 day to 1 year for the first offense and dismissal from the service for the second offense.

a. Conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service

b. Directly or indirectly having financial and material interest in any transaction requiring the approval of one's office. Financial and material interest is defined as pecuniary or propriety interest by which a person will gain or lose something

c. Disclosing or misusing confidential or classified information officially known by reason of one's office and not made available to the public, to further one's private interests or give undue advantage to anyone or to prejudice the public interest

d. Disgraceful and immoral conduct

e. Frequent unauthorized absences (habitual absenteeism)

f. Gross insubordination

g. Habitual tardiness in reporting for duty causing prejudice to the operations of the office

h. Inefficiency and incompetence in the performance of official duties, which, in the alternative, may be punished by demotion

i. Less serious dishonesty

j. Loafing from duty during regular office hours

k. Obtaining or using any statement filed under the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees (RA 6713) for any purpose contrary to morals or public policy or any commercial purpose other than by news and communications media for dissemination to the general public

l. Oppression

m. Owning, controlling, managing, or accepting employment as officer, employee, consultant, counsel, broker, agent, trustee, or nominee in any private enterprise regulated, supervised

Loafing refers to frequent unauthorized absences from duty during regular hours despite entering attendance in the office.

Grave offense penalty:

First Offense: Suspension for 6months and 1 day to 1 year

Second Offense: Dismissal from the service

DEPDev VIII officials and employees are prohibited from taking alcoholic drinks and engaging in gambling activities within and outside of DEPDev premises during office hours or within the office premises after regular office hours​

Light offense penalty:

First Offense: Reprimand

Second Offense: Suspension of 1 to 30 days

Third Offense: Dismissal from the service

Downloading of videos for personal use is not allowed.

Using office's telephone for personal use is not allowed.