Government IT Career, no good?

During a beer-drinking spree (I actually had just one bottle) last week with a friend, he told me that he had left his post at the DILG’s IT Department to move to a private company. He had several such opportunities before but recent developments have prompted him to grab this latest offer.

I’m fairly familiar with the Philippine Government’s Salary Grade (and the Salary Standardization Law) so I understand why one would want to go private. We’ll, it’s common knowledge that there’s no money in government service (unless you’re alignjed with a jueteng lord) but I have been told that there are a lot of perks and benefits that come along with it.

A government employee with a salary grade of 11 would bring home just over 8 thousand pesos a month. Barely enough for a single person to live by, much more to raise a family.

Still, work in a government office isn’t as stressful as in other private corporations. Add that to the wide plethora of benefits for you and your family along with the saying that “a government employment is yours to keep until retirement” is something to consider. There’s no such thing as security of tenure in the private sector.

So, my friend asked me if ‘it was a good move’ and I said, under the circumstances, getting twice the take-home pay is better if you have more than one mouth to feed.

Abe Olandres

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines. He is also a technology consultant, a tech columnist with several national publications, resource speaker and mentor/advisor to several start-up companies.

https://www.yugatech.com

21 Comments

Miguel says:

19 years ago

and, government job == time for sidelines, right?
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toots ople says:

19 years ago

yuga, stress levels in government service compared to private practice, if you will, depends on the position and nature of your job. for example, if you deal with welfare assistance to OFWs, the stress level is indescribably high. when i was at the Office of the Communications Director, i had to give up my weekends several times to meet urgent deadlines. the perks? i wish it were as you described it. siguro depende on the kind of boss you have or the kind of person you are. i devoted 18 years to government service, and believe me, the best perk was learning on the job. your friend will indeed earn more in the private sector, but i’m glad that he did serve in government at least for a few years.
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Eric says:

19 years ago

i was born with both parents working at the govt. mom has already retred pero dad is still in the active sevice.

i can still remember that, since i stepped in Grade 1 until i got into college, i have never bought a single piece of bond paper, pentel pen, puncher, stapler, folder fastener, paper cips, scotch tapes, pati tissue paper, alcohol, and all other items…

madami supplies kasi sa govt.

to say that walang pera sa gobyerno… i dont tink so.. not all govt offices.. alam ko one of the highest paying govt office parents ko nag wo work.. di ko na alng mention. ehehe dami nga nila bonuses eh.. si naman ako nakikinabang..

hehe :)
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Pao says:

19 years ago

hi! found your site thru sassy’s.

interesting post. my parents both worked in government before. mom has since retired & dad previously worked as a faculty in the state university. but with 4 kids, my dad left the state U & transferred to a private univ. higher pay, more benefits esp. for faculty members.

but yeah, working in the govt also has its perks. among my siblings, i was the only one who got to enjoy free tuition from kinder to college. as in i only paid miscellaneous fees! :)
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J. Angelo Racoma says:

19 years ago

“yuga, stress levels in government service compared to private practice”

True. But that depends on your agency and your department’s main undertakings. Some people I know do, indeed, consider their gov’t jobs as their sidelines, while at the same time running businesses that earn them big bucks.

If you want to work for government and earn big bucks, go for a GOCC. They’re not covered by the SSL–or at least that was the case before (they’re trying to rationalize these days, and I think they’ve frozen hiring activities).

For instance, an entry-level technical position at PSALM, NPC or TransCo would give you twice the compensation of a senior technical staffer of a line agency (say NEDA, DFA, etc.).
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hip2b2 says:

19 years ago

Also government jobs allow (encourage) you to take futher studies. Take a masters or PhD!
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Ambot Lang says:

19 years ago

Government People Sucks! Not all anyway but most of them are just crooks pretending to be wolves (hehehe both are damn voracious eaters). I lost my respect to them, thats true. Instead that they should be ashamed of reporting late, going home early, etc. most of them are boasting it instead! Shame on them!
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Abe Olandres says:

19 years ago

Ahh yes, I forgot to mention that my friend was actually finishing his sponsored Masters thesis now.
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Eric says:

19 years ago

i remember when i was still living with my parents, despite the 8-5 work hours nila, dad would still bring mounds of paper at home at dun mag o overtime sa bahay pero mom told me it was never declared daw as overtime.

i know there are a lot of crooks in the government, pero not all.. andami ko ding mga kilala nag tratrabaho sa government giving their best para sa kapakanan ng mamamyan…
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Mike Abundo says:

18 years ago

IT creates efficiency. Politicians aren’t interested in that.
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Paris says:

18 years ago

I am currently working for the government, IT department. Money isn’t good. At madami pang ‘boss’ at feeling ‘boss’ (/gripes)
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beeps says:

17 years ago

Reality speaks for I.Ts self. :)
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Angel says:

16 years ago

I was before a contractual employee in one of the agricultural bureau under DA where i was compensated 10k a month. But due to the high standard of living here in Manila, i transfered to a private company and my first pay in the first halp of the month including OT pay is equal to the amount that i was receiving in my previous gov’t work. Now i’m enjoying my job and i am earning.Working in the gov’t is best after putting up a bussiness through savings from the private company job.
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Dwayne says:

16 years ago

I worked as an IT in gocc for 7 years, and guess what? Nothing is promising unless you worked as a regular employee, yes, I worked for 7 years being a contractual for PHP 8,500…in 7 years without salary adjustment. And you know what really sucks, is that most of the regular employees making chismis until 5pm, Ang masakit nito. Come payday and bonuses, Wala ka sa kalingkingan ng matatanggap nila…nagrereklamo pa. Tsk!
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Stanley O. Rasonabe says:

15 years ago

I really wanted to be connected with the government service. I have 2 eligibilities but unfortunately I wasn’t able to work in the govt. Wala kasi akong BACKER, hehehe. May I ask, what govt agency is hiring employees or having job vacancies. kindly advice me. I am a graduate of BS COmputer Engineering. I completed the academic requirements for Master in Public Administration. Currently, I am working in a private company in Bohol but I am receiving a minimum wage only. huhuhu.
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Pam says:

15 years ago

Planning to go to gov. service, to continue my studies on graduate school.
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Surrogate Mother : says:

14 years ago

government jobs are still the best when it comes to job security :~~
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Cotton Comforter Sets Â· says:

14 years ago

it is really great to get government jobs because the government can give you a good job security `~.
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liza says:

14 years ago

i’ve experienced working in private sectors before i worked in a government agency. it’s true government work is not that stressful but it depends on what agency you are working with. There are ups and downs in government work.
I’ve given up my permanent work in an LGU to work as a contractual in a NGA. My work is to monitor all the IT related activities of the LGU’s in a region and a lot more. The region I’m in is also a conflict area.
The job is quite demanding compared to other government agencies + late salaries up to 3 months! Only a few people even knows about our agency coz we don’t advertise what we do.
I got offers from big IT companies with promising compensations but I love my job.
I realized I don’t work for money. I’m satisfied with a simple lifestyle. At least someone like me would give service to my fellow Filipino people even in a small way. No amount of money can compare to the smiles and thank you’s that I receive and duly knowing the good impact of the programs/grants to their lives.
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uchiha sasuke says:

12 years ago

I am an IT Graduate and i worked for 7 years in an NGO, and recently i applied for a position in a Government Office… I can say that there are advantages in both sides…
NGO:
-Budgets are easily taken cared
-Supplies,travels,reimbursements are provided. -Finances are well-attended.
-Is performance-based.
GOVERNMENT:
-Budget depends upon the Head of Office.
-Budgets, supplies, travels, reimbursements are delayed and some doesnt really come.
-You perform or not…. if in a permanent status, its a privilege.
-Security of tenure……
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