Guide: Updated Benefits of COS, JO workers in Government

Good News for COS, JO workers in Government!

Good news to all Contract of Service (COS) and Job Order (JO) workers in government! The Civil Service Commission (CSC), Commission on Audit (COA) and the Department of Budget and Management jointly revised the rules and regulations on the engagement of COS and JO workers in government.

On December 15, 2025, they issued CSC-COA-DBM Joint Circular No. 1, s. 2025 to provide the revised rules and regulations on the engagement of COS and JO workers in government providing therewith the government policies on the engagement of COS and JO workers as well as their updated benefits.

In the said Joint Circular, the CSC, COA, and DBM provide a clearer list of the benefits of COS and JO workers in government. In this post, we will discuss each benefits for COS and JO workers.

But first, What is Contract of Service (COS) and Job Order (JO) workers?

What is Contract of Service?

Contract of Service or COS refers to the engagement of services of an individual, private firm, other government agency, non-governmental agency or international organization as consultant, learning service provider or technical expert to undertake special project of job within a specific period. 

What is Job Order?

Job Order or JO refers to piece of work (pakyaw) or intermittent or emergency jobs such as cleaning of debris on the roads, canals, and waterways, etc. after natural/man-made disasters/occurrences, and other manual/trades and crafts services such as carpentry, plumbing, electrical, and the like. These jobs are of short duration and for a specific piece of work.

List of Benefits of COS, JO workers in Government

Salary

According to the new guidelines, individuals hired through COS shall be paid the prevailing market rate or the salary of comparable positions in the government. On the other hand, individuals hired through JO shall be paid the daily wage of comparable positions in the government.

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Up to 20% premium

Agencies which engage the services of COS and/or JO workers shall provide a premium not exceeding 20% of the salary/wage of the COS and/or JO workers, subject to availability of funds.

Unlike in previous Circular where the 20% premium for COS, JO workers may be paid in tranches (monthly, semi-annually or yearly), the premium payments, according to the latest guidelines, will cover the worker’s contributions, classified as voluntary or self-employed membership, to government-mandated social security programs (SSS, PhilHealth, and the Pag-IBIG Fund) ensuring access to social insurance, housing and loan facility, and healthcare. This shall be charged against the MOOE component of the approved agency budget.

Overtime Pay

Subject to availability of funds and as written in the pertinent Contracts and Agreements with the agency concerned, COS and JO workers shall receive overtime pay for services rendered beyond official working hours or on rest days, holidays, and non-working days, subject to the same rules and regulations prescribed under the CSC-DBM Joint Circular No. 2, s. 2025 or the Policies and Guidelines on Overtime Services and Overtime Pay for Government Employees. The payment of OT Pay shall be charged against the same MOOE item as the service payments of the COS and JO workers.

Reimbursement of Expenses for Official Local Travel

While on official local travel, the COS and JO workers shall be allowed reimbursement of actual travel expenses, subject to the rules and regulations prescribed under Executive Order No. 77, s. 2019 prescribing the rules and regulations and rates of expenses and allowances for official local and foreign travels of government personnel.

The funds needed to pay the reimbursement of expenses for official local travel of COS and JO workers shall be charged against the appropriations for travel expenses in the annual agency budget.

Flexible Work Arrangement (FWA)

With due consideration of their functions and tasks, the COS and JO workers may be considered for the FWA, subject to the guidelines prescribed under the COA-DBM Joint Circular No. 1, s. 2022 providing the policies on the adoption of flexible work arrangements for COS and JO workers in government, as well as any subsequent issuances on the matter.

Additional Ancillary Benefits

The grant of additional ancillary/supplemental benefits to the COS and JO workers may be authorized such as the Gratuity Pay, subject to the availability of funds and compliance with existing relevant laws, rules and regulations, including any subsequent guidelines that may be issued and deemed applicable for the purpose.

Opportunity for regular position in government

According to the revised rules and regulations for COS and JO workers, government agencies shall consider their existing COS and JO workers in the preparation of their respective Optimization Plans pursuant to Republic Act (RA) No. 12231 or the Government Optimization Act. This is vital in order to absorb the qualified COS/JO workers in the plantilla positions that will be created in agencies concerned, in line with the implementation of RA No. 12231.

In addition, the existing qualified COS and JO workers shall be considered for appointment by the government agencies to their vacant positions subject to the existing civil service laws, rules and regulation, and the agency’s CSC-approved Merit Selection Plan, while ensuring adherence to the equal opportunity and non-discrimination policies in their selection and appointment of personnel.

In this regard, government agencies must include a provision in their institutional contracts with a contractor or service provider stipulating that the existing qualified COS and JO worker of the agency shall be considered during the recruitment or hiring process of the contractor or service provider.

All the benefits provided above are all identified in the CSC-COA-DBM Joint Circular No. 1, s .2025. Download the subject Circular here.

Wellness Leave

According to Civil Service Resolution No. 2501292 (Wellness Leave Policy), government agencies may grant Wellness Leave to their Job Order and Contract of Service workers subject to the provisions of their individual contracts and relevant issuances covering their engagement.

When will these benefits take effect?

The CSC-COA-DBM Joint Circular No. 1, s. 2025 shall take effect 15 days after its publication in a newspaper of general circulation and after filing thereof in the Office of the National Administrative Register at the University of the Philippines Law Center. The same is true with CSC Resolution No. 2501292 after its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general publication.

Applicability

These benefits are not applicable to the following:

• COs and Jo workers whose service payments are accounted as Engineering and Administrative Overhead Expenses (EAOE) of the concerned departments, as authorized in the particular year’s General Appropriations Act (GAA); and

• COS or JO workers engaged by the local government units (LGUs).

Question

If you have any question about this post, kindly leave us a comment below and we will answer them as soon as we can. Please share this post on your social media accounts so that more COS and JO workers will know about it.