By Rep. Antonio Tinio
Alliance of Concerned Teachers
Following a productive dialogue with the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), the Commission on Elections (Comelec) officially promulgated Resolution No. 11212-A, effectively removing the unjust three-month expiration period for teachers’ election service credits.
We jointly met with Comelec Chairman George Garcia and ACT Chairperson Ruby Bernardo to demand the scrapping of the restrictive deadline and celebrated the issuance of the resolution as a concrete triumph for educators.
The promulgation of Resolution No. 11212-A is a hard-won victory for our teachers. This is the direct result of their collective action and persistent struggle to defend the compensation and benefits they rightfully deserve for taking on heavy responsibilities in our country’s electoral process.
Service credits are not mere privileges but rightful compensation for the grueling hours, physical exhaustion, and heightened risks teachers endure to ensure the smooth conduct of elections. The previous policy, which forced teachers to forfeit benefits they had already earned due to restrictive deadlines, was grossly unjust and unacceptable.
But while we celebrate this milestone, we also would like to point out that the broader demands of teachers remain unaddressed. We vow to continue pressing the Comelec and the national government for substantial reforms in election workers’ compensation and welfare.
We cannot treat our teachers as cheap labor for the country’s democratic exercises. It is unacceptable that they remain overworked and underpaid for duties that put their lives and safety on the line. We persistently demand higher, tax-exempt election honoraria of at least P15,000, overtime pay for extended poll work hours, and expanded logistical and welfare support.
We commend the Comelec’s commitment to involve teachers’ unions in monitoring elections and addressing field-level concerns through the Voter Care Hotline. This engagement mechanism is a crucial step toward ensuring that the safety, welfare, and working conditions of teachers are promptly addressed in real time.
We will relentlessly pursue the remaining electoral reforms both in the House of Representatives and through continuous dialogue with the Comelec, standing in solidarity with Alliance of Concerned Teachers and other educators’ organizations.
We will hold the Comelec to its commitments and continue to fight alongside our teachers for the just compensation, benefits, and protections they deserve. Their invaluable service to the nation’s democracy must be recognized and valued, never exploited.
