What is the Salary Grade?

A salary grade (SG) is a number that defines the amount of monthly payment/income that a government employee receives. Salary grades in the Philippine government run from 1 to 33, with 33 receiving the highest pay.

Each government position is assigned a salary grade based on its difficulty level and range of responsibilities. The higher the number, the more complex and broader the responsibilities' scope. Thus, those with a higher salary grade receive higher pay than others.

What is the Salary Step?

Each salary grade consists of eight steps (except for SG 33, with only two steps) that correspond to the basic salary of an employee based on how long he/she has served in a particular position.

Regardless of salary grade, all newly hired government employees start at Step 1, the minimum pay rate. After every three years of continuous satisfactory service in their current positions, employees move to the next salary step indicating their increased salary.

A Notice of Step Increment is issued to the concerned employees for every salary increase.

This continues until they reach step 8, the final and maximum rate within a salary grade.

This means government employees get a raise every three years (as long as they perform well at work) without moving out of their salary grade.

Salary Grades of Different Government Positions

1. Constitutional Officials/Executive Category

   These elected or appointed officials hold the highest positions in the government and are thus assigned the higher salary grades.

   As the country's highest-ranking government official, the President of the Philippines has the highest salary grade of 33.

   Here are the salary grades of top government officials in the Philippines:

   Position	Salary Grade
   President	33
   Vice President Senate President Speaker of the House of Representatives Supreme Court Chief Justice	32
   Senator Congressman Supreme Court Associate Justice Constitutional Commission Chairman Executive Secretary Department Secretary Solicitor general Other positions of equivalent rank	31
   Constitutional Commission Commissioner Department Undersecretary Other positions of equivalent rank	30

2. Professional Supervisory

   Government employees with a management role in their respective organizations are assigned salary grades 9 to 33. They jobs require extensive technical knowledge and a bachelor's degree or higher.

   Examples of positions in the professional supervisory category are Senior Vice President, Director II, Elementary School Principal I, and Engineer IV.

3. Professional Non-Supervisory

   Positions that require the practice of a specific profession or thorough knowledge of the arts or sciences are assigned salary grades 8 to 30. Government employees with such positions are graduates of a four-year course.

   Examples of positions in the professional non-supervisory category are University Professor, Teacher I, Chemist I, Statistician I, Tourist Receptionist I, and Municipal Treasurer.

4. Sub-Professional Supervisory

   Employees who supervise workers performing manual, clerical, or technical jobs are assigned salary grades 4 to 18. Their positions require secondary education, vocational education, or completion of up to two years in college.

   Examples of positions in the sub-professional supervisory category are Electrician Foreman, Chief Bookbinder, and Bookbinder IV.

5. Sub-Professional Non-Supervisory

   Workers who perform manual, repetitive, or routine work and are elementary/high school/vocational graduates or college undergraduates are assigned salary grades 1 to 10.

   Examples of positions in the sub-professional non-supervisory category are Staff Aide, Draftsman I, Administrative Aide III, and Dental Aide.

Who is covered by the salary increase?

Pay hikes under the Salary Standardization Law apply to all civilian government workers with regular, contractual, or casual status--whether full-time or part-time--in the following offices:

• Executive, legislative, and judicial branches;
• Constitutional Commissions and other Constitutional Offices; and
• Government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) not covered by Republic Act No. 10149

Who is exempted from the SSL?

Although they are part of the Philippine government, these groups are NOT covered by the salary increases mandated by the Salary Standardization Law:

• Military and uniformed personnel, including Police Officer I in the Philippine National Police (PNP), Private in the Department of National Defense, and equivalent ranks in the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), the Philippine Coast Guard, the Philippine Public Safety College, and the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority;
• GOCCs under RA 10149. (They have their Compensation and Position Classification System);
• Job order workers; and
• Consultancy or any contract with no employe-employee relationship.

How much is the salary increase for government workers?

The increases in government salary under the Salary Standardization Law of 2019 average 5% in 2020. They range from ₱483 (for SG 1) to ₱7,762 (for SG 33).

But by 2023, the pay hikes will average 23.2% after all the increases have been applied.

Mid-level government employees, or those with salary grades 11 to 13, get the highest raise of 24.1% in 2020 to 30.7% in 2023. These workers include entry-level public teachers, nurses, statisticians, accountants civil defense officers, and agriculturists.

For example, a Teacher I or Nurse I with a salary grade of 11 gets an increase of ₱1,562 in 2020 (from ₱20,754 in 2019 to ₱22,316 in 2020). In the next three years, the starting salary of employees in the same position will increase to ₱23,877 in 2021, ₱25,439 in 2022, and ₱27,000 in 2023.

Workers with salary grades 1 to 10 enjoy an increase of 17.5% in 2020 to 20.5% in 2023.

For example, a Utility Worker I with a salary grade of 1 gets a raise of ₱483 in 2020 (from ₱11,068 in 2019 to ₱11,551 in 2020). The pay of SG 1 workers will increase to ₱12,034 in 2021, ₱12,517 in 2022, and ₱13,000 in 2023.

Having the lowest raise of 8% are those within the highest salary grade range (SG 25 to 33), particularly in executive-level positions.

Source: FilipiKnow