1ST MEETING

SOCLEG TRANSCRIPTION FOR 2ND EXAM

SSS LAW

1ST MEETING

SSS Law

Now, the most common questions in the BAR EXAMINATION for the SSS are the coverage, effectivity, effects of non-contribution, effects of separation, the so-called PARTIAL PORTABILITY of the SSS and vice versa of the GSIS as the ____. You know, the critics of SSS say what is wrong with the system is it is supposed to be for the employees but the recording system is based on the employer. Mangita usa ka sa imong employer -- EMPLOYER CENTERED. There are now moves to make it an EMPLOYEE CENTERED RECORDING SYSTEM. One who has tried it as EMPLOYEE CENTERED is Chile. In Chile, the SSS system is EMPLOYEE CENTERED.

Employers, under Sec. 9 of the SSS law of employees not over 60yrs of age are compulsory covered by the SSS. As to employees, coverage to the SSS shall be compulsory upon all employees not over 60yrs of age.

How about SELF-EMPLOYED? Before, is was VOLUNTARY COVERAGE. Now, it is COMPULSORY for all self-employed persons, earning P1800 or more, per annum. KASAMBAHAY, if you are already earning P1k a month.

Effective date of coverage for employees: Compulsory coverage for employees shall take effect on the day of his employment. Sec. 10: Effective date of coverage for the employer takes effect on the first day of his operation. OPERATION means not in the engineering sense like machines that are working, as long as you are already OPEN SHOP, you are already in operation. If you have hired people, you are in operation. So thats the meaning of operation.

Effective date of coverage for the SELF-EMPLOYED:Compulsory coverage of self-employed referred to in Sec. 9-A, par. 1-5 shall take effect upon his registration with the SSS.

What is the effect of separation from employment?

) The separation of an employee under compulsory coverage, his employers contribution on his account and his obligation to pay contribution arising from that employment shall cease at the end of the month of separation.

) ___ employee shall be credited with all the contributions paid on his behalf and entitled to the benefits according to the provisions of the SSS. -- Which means, maternity. What is required for you to avail of the maternity benefits? How many contributions? 3 contributions in the immediately preceding semester. Unya, kung naputol na imong trabaho pero nakahatag na ka ug 3 months contribution, you are still entitled to maternity benefis because you have made the minimum required contributions.

)The employee may however continue to pay to claim his rights to full benefits -- VOLUNTARY CONTINUATION OF MEMBERSHIP BY CONTINUING THE ENTIRE CONTRIBUTION. E.g. Separated ka from the service, you can choose to continue to contribute, not only your counterpart, but the employers counterpart and you continue in the full membership in the SSS.

LIMITED PORTABILITY - if you move from SSS, e.g. you are in the private sector abugado ka na nagprivate practice, pagkahuman mitrabaho ka sa gobyerno, unsa man imong trabaho? DAR adjudication officer. So, you are now GSIS. Naputol ang SSS, GSIS na. Nagsugod pa man lng ka sa GSIS. And then all of a sudden, you need maternity benefits. Pagbalhin nimo sa gobyerno 7 months pa lng ka. Technically speaking, wa pa may 3 months in a semester na contribution sa GSIS. You will not qualify under the GSIS law. What happens? The law says that for purposes of maternity benefits, and this alone, your contributions in the SSS will be carried over so that you will qualify for maternity benefits under the GSIS.

LIMITED PORTABILITY according to the Chile SSS system, if it is employee centered, it goes wherever you are. Dli employer ang magbuot ana. Wherever you are, you are fully covered because the system is EMPLOYEE CENTERED.

What is the effect of INTERRUPTION OF BUSINESS or PROFESSIONAL INCOME? PROFESSIONAL INCOME, this is for the SELF-EMPLOYED. If the self-employed realizes no income in any given month, he shall not be required to pay contributions for that month. He may however be allowed to continue paying contributions under the same rules and regulations applicable to a separated employee member. -- So you can continue, in which case you will receive the full benefits of the SSS. If you cannot continue, then you are entitled to the benefits up to and including your last contribution. If you transfer to the GSIS, LIMITED PORTABILITY as to a particular benefit that you are applying.

Is there such a thing as VOLUNTARY COVERAGE?

) Voluntary coverage refers to Filipinos recruited in the Philippines by foreign-based employers for employment abroad. They may be covered by the SSS on a voluntary basis. -- this is what many OFWs do. They continue their contributions with the SSS for pension purposes bcoz once you finish a certain number of years, then you would be entitled to a pension.

) Also spouses who devote full time to managing the household and family affairs may be covered by the SSS on a voluntary basis. -- this is new. Spouses of members of the SSS who are not really working bcoz they are managing the household and family affairs. They may be covered by the SSS. They will have to take the requisite contributions.

Remember now that the test as to whether or not an employee is covered is the same test as the Labor Code test -- CONTROL TEST.

Then and again the SC has reiterated this principle. The 4 requisites for the existence of an EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP, the cardinal test to which is the CONTROL TEST.

) Selection and hiring

)Payment of wages

) Power to dismiss

) Power of control - as to the means and methods used to achieve these goals

NOTE: You do not need to register in the SSS a casual employee. But when the CONTROL TEST comes in, that is when you need to register your employee with the SSS. You know this will be your first case in Labor. Mao jud ni ang manggawas. Why? Because:

Sales forces which used to be a ___ in all business establishments no longer exists -- kanang mamaligyaay nga mga sales people, kadaghanan ana contracted out na na. Lain2x lng na sila ug mga ngalan, tawgon na sila ug sales force, naay uban gawgon sila ug model (kanang mamaliga ug promo). Lain2x lng na sila ug mga pangalan pero they are contracted out. The question is, are they the employees of the person who call their employer to make use of their service? And the determining factor is CONTROL. Naa ganiy control, report sa SSS. Wa ganiy control, di kinahanglan ireport sa SSS. How is control manifested? Ex: Those who sell Tide.

) When they dont sell any other thing except Tide. -- Tide lng jud ilang ginabaligya. Q: Can they determine the price? The price is stated in the SRP. -- DICTATED RETAIL PRICE. Suwayi kng lahi na presyo ang imung ibutang nga lahi didto sa gisulti ngadtos taas, unsa mana imuha na? Di na mahimo.

) Di sila makabuot ug asa sila na lugar makaad2. -- if you were independent, you can decide wherever you want to go. But bcoz you are under control, then you can only go to these particular places. These are the indices of control.

Now, even if they are under the control of the maker of the goods that they are selling, many employees of the placement agencies now are reported to the SSS by the agency bcoz you will not get good people if the agency does not report you to the SSS.

Now question, is the fact that the agency reports you to the SSS as their employee, does that indicate of the possibility of your being an employee of the indirect employers? NOT NECESSARILY. Bcoz, the moment that you are made to do something else not included in the contract, you right away cross over, you are now following orders from the indirect employer, you gave ceased to be a placement employee or contractual employee, and you are now the employee of the owner of the goods that you are selling. So make sure, there are many decided cases that are determinants of the existence of an employer-employee relationship. What are the kinds of employment that are exempted from the compulsory coverage of the SSS law? Under Sectin 8J of the SSS law as ammanded, the following employments are exempted from coverage:

) Agricultural labor when performed by a share or leasehold tenant or worker who is not paid on a regular daily wage and does not work for any other in an uninterrupted period of 6 months in a year.

E.g. Wet rice paddies - kanang mga tigharvest ug mga humay--pagturtle sa mga humay; pagsudlay sa humay; HS students gatrabaho sa humayan; tigharvest sa humay (pakyaw basis). -- kini sila, di ni sila angay ireport sa SSS bcoz they are considered as contrctual in nature. Mangutana ka, kapila naman na cya magturtle nganha, muingon ka ug 20 anyos mao ra gihapin na iyang trabaho na cgeg gaturtle dha, syaro wa maregular. Dli gihapkn na sila maregular bcoz the system says so. So agricultural wise, you need not be reported even if you have been til,ing that same for a long period, as long as you are within the system.

TO BE CONTINUED FOR NXT MEETING...

2ND MEETING

For example, you are voluntarily covered by the SSS and you are a crew member of a foreign based employer, and in your contract there is also coverage of SSS in the country that your are _____. So question, can you collect from both? That is the issue. If let us say that you have met sickness that is not work related. And the answer is, it all depends on your contract. And normally, under Philippine law, it will be the system of coverage that offers the seaman the better benefits. That is normally the rule that is followed.

Now, you of course know that the power of control test is applicable with respect to the determination of who are the kinds of employees that are covered, that the employer must cover. In other words, if you are a casual employee, you cannot oblige the employer to cover you.

You are a sales agent instead of a sales personnel of the employer.

What are the indices that you are a sales agent and that you are not a sales personnel of let us say, Singer Sewing Machines (Check: Singer v. SSS {Dec. 16, 1969}).

ELEMENTS OF CONTROL:

) An agent is not obliged to report for regular hours.

) An agent can sell other goods or machineries other than that of Singer. There is exclusivity if you are an employee of Singer. If you are a sales agent, you are tied exclusively to Singer and you can only sell Singer sewing machines.

C.) You are not paid a regular basic wage. If you are an agent, you subsist entirely on commission, so that your earnings is commensurte to your industry. If you are an employee, since you are exclusively devoted to Singer, you can always sell Singer plus you are given a basic wage or let us say the very least, transportation allowance to enable you to go to those places, and those places alone, that your employer wants you to go. The employer will make you write reports from visits which you have made. These are indices that you are not a sales agent but a sales personnel of the employer.

Now it is the control test that is determinative of compulsory compensation in the SSS. And once again, the boundary rule is repeated.

Cases: 5J Taxi Case, NLU v. Dinglasan, NLU v. Judge Macapanton Abbas (old case)

NLU v. Judge Abbas case: SC held that drivers that are under the boundary system are considered to be employees. And the operators that are licensed in the LTFRB to engage in public transportation, these operators are their employers, thus they must be enrolled in the SSS.

You know the taxis now are very happy bcoz of the extended Christmas. Kay wa man minaug ang taripa unya wa man patas-i ang abang, unya mubo man ang gasolina. So in short, doble ilang kita.

Now, does that mean na double sad ilahang contribution? No. The same contribution to the SSS. The employer as his counterpart, the operator, and then the driver under the boundary system also has his share.

So, under Section 3J of the SSS Law, there are the following kinds of employment which are exempted from the compulsory coverage under the SSS Law.

OCCUPATIONS EXEMPTED FROM THE COMPULSORY COVERAGE OF THE SSS:

) Agricultural labor then performed by a sharecrop tenant or leasehold tenant or worker who is not paid a regular daily wage of his pay and who does not work for an uninterrupted period.

E.g. Kana bang pakyaw2x ba. Pakyaw2x dili covered. Why? Bcoz many of those agricultural labor, they have no formal employers.

-Ricefield workers examples -> turtle of ricefields. Just bcoz for 10 yrs, you have the same turtuler, does not make him your employee that you have to report him to the SSS. Bcoz he is exempted under Section 8J of the SSS Law.

-HS students work in the ricefields -> Kanang mga estudyante na nagbalik2x hangtod mangahuman na lng na sila sa HS lain nasad ang mupuli ila nasad na mga manghod, kinahanglan ba na sila ienroll sa SSS? Dli. Mao na sila ang exception. Section 8J. Bcoz they are not paid on a regular daily wage or base pay. They do not do uninterrupted labor for at least 6 months in a year.

) Domestic service in a private ____ - REPEALED! Bcoz of the KASAMBAHAY LAW.

) Meaning P1K+ na gani na ang sweldo sa inyong maid apil sa cya sa coverage sa SSS. -> wa nay mukuha ug mubo pa lng sa P1K.

-Now: Compulsory coverage na ang kasambahay sa SSS.

) When purely casual and not for the purpose of the occupation of or business of the employer.

) E.g. Sumpay saimong balay magpabuhat ka ug kwarto. Naa na cyay CR. Maghire ka ug carpenter, mason, plumber ug electrician.

-Kadaghan ba anang ienroll nimo sa SSS kng tinuod pa nang you have an obligation. They are excluded bcoz they are not doing something essential to or in line with the occupation or business of the employer. In fact, the employer has no business or occupation. Its a regular household. Nagpabuhat cya ug balay ana. So they are purely casual an you need not report them to the SSS.

) Service employed by the individual in the employ of a son, daughter, spouse and service performed by a child under the age of 21 under the employ of his parent.

Unsa may occupation sa iyang ginikanan? Sprayer. Mang-ispray ug mangga. Now, kinsa man ang iyang #1 sprayer? Iyang anak. Ngano na #1 mna? Kay amahan cge mag tudlo sa anak. Naa cya kuyog sa iyang amahan. Ireport na nimo sa SSS? Tagaan na nimo ug SSS registration?

-Kng tinuod ka na amahan na galantaw sa kaugmaon sa imong anak, ienroll na nimo cya sa SSS. Pero kng gasunod ka sa balaod, exempt na cya. Wa kay obligasyon sa ireport cya sa SSS. Unsa man ka, tinuod na amahan or employer?

NOTE: If you are the parent, you are not obliged. But if you really think of the welfare of your child, ienroll na nimo cya bisag dli ka obliged.) Service performed on or in connection with an alien vessel by an employee if he is employed when such vessel is outside the Philippines -> that is VOLUNTARY ENROLLMENT

) Service performed in the employ of the Philippine govt or instrumentality or agency thereof.

Employed ka, while in the employ of the Philippine govt or the instrumentality or agency thereof.

-E.g. Unsa man imung tinuod na trabaho? Nurse. Aha man ka nagtrabaho ug nurse? DavaoDoc. Unsa man imung specialty? ICU nurse. Unya, reserved man sad ka sa military. Serve sa ka sa military for 6 mos. kay ang nagtawag nimo kay ang inhang lungsod. Now when you are serving, do you still pay SSS? Remember, when you serve the military, you are considered as an official of the military. Your lowest rank would be that of a lieutenant. Are you obliged to pay SSS? No, you are not. Maayo na padayunon na nimoug bayad ug wa pa ka ma-vested ug kuwang pa imung subtotal obligations. Padayon, VOLUNTARY BASIS. Natural na under any obligation.

) Services performed in the employ of foreign govts or international organizations or any instrumentalities therein.

E.g. Naa ka nagtrabaho sa Indonesian embassy. Wa ka ireport sa SSS. Pwede ba na? Yes! Wa kay labot sa SSS. The Indonesian embassy is not under any obligation to enroll you in the SSS bcoz thats one of the exceptions provided for.

) Such other services performed by temporary employees which may be excluded by regulation of the Commission. Employees of bonafide independent contractors shall not be deemed employees of the employer engaging the services of said contractors. Independent contractors shall not be deemed employees of the employer engaging the services of said employees.

E.g. Davao Light - the board has decided that they are going to adapt a computerized system based on this database. So they engage the services of this contractor to install the database and the application program. They come over. They are not subject to the hours of work of the ordinary employee, but they are always there. Sometimes they sleep there. They are no longer working for any other but this employer who has signed a contract with them. Is this independent employer obliged to report them to the SSS? No. It is the contractor who has the obligation to report them for the coverage to the SSS.

Now, the so-called CASUAL EMPLOYEES are not subject to the compulsory coverage to the SSS. An employment is still casual if it is not necessary or useful for the purpose of the occupation or business of the employer.

PRESCRIPTIVE PERIODS FOR THE REMITTANCES OF THE CONTRIBUTION/PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION:

1.) Whoever fails or refuses to comply with the provisions of the SSS law or with the rules and regulations promulgated by the commission shall be punished:

-By a fine of not less than P500 or more than P5000, or imprisonment for not less than 6 months or more than 1 yr or both at the discretion of the court.

) Where the violation consists in failure of refusal to register the employees or himself, in case of covered self-employed, or to deduct contributions in the employees compensation and remit the same to the SSS, the penalty shall be a fine of not less than P500 or more than P5000, and imprisonment for not less than 6 mos. nor more than 1 yr.

TAKE NOTE: Under SC decided cases, SC has said that you can be penalized for a fine of not less than P500 or more than P1000 or imprisonment for not less than 6 mos or more than 1 yr plus you may be charged with ESTAFA. If you are the employer, cge ka ug deduct, cge ka ug deduct, unya wa nimo iremit, you can be charged together with the violation of the SSS law (Sec. 2018) plus ESTAFA (RPC).

Before, the prosecutors office used to get the prior permission of the SSS manager before they could file this case. The SC now says, the prosecutor can now file this, even without prior permission from the SSS.

However, many of these cases did not proceed. Why? The moment this accused employer settles with the SSS (Eg. Ah, bayran na lng nako tanan. Unya muhangyo pajud na sila na ayaw na lng iapil ang mga surcharge and mga interest ug mga penalties). Unya usahay muingon ang SSS O cge. So the SSS loses interest. Set for hearing, unya muingon and court, Where is the SSS? kay sila man ang naay records. SSS, what is this? Unya mu-move ang prosecutor sa pagreset sa hearing. Then ireset sa court ang hearing. Ika-duha na ireset. Unsa gani ang rights sa accused? MOTION TO DISMISS on the ground of SPEEDY TRIAL. Wa na. Mawagtang na na since the SSS has already lose interest in the case. Gamay ra man gud na sila ug personnel. Lain nasad na ilang gukdon ug pangitaon aron idugang ang contribution sa SSS.

PRESCRIPTIVE PERIOD OF CRIMINAL OFFENSES UNDER THE SSS:

Since the SSS is a special law, it could be argued that the penal provisions are to be governed by Act # 3336 (An Act that Establishes the Prescriptive Period for Penal Provisions of Special Laws and Shall also Provide When the Prescription Shall Begin to Count). What is that? Violations penalized by special law shall, unless otherwise provided, prescribe in accordance with the ff. rules:

) After 1 yr for offenses punished by a fine or by imprisonment for not more than 1 month.

) After 4 yrs for those punished by imprisonment for more than 1 month but less than 3 yrs.

) After 8 yrs for those punished by imprisonment for 3 yrs or more but less than 6 yrs.

) After 12 yrs for any other offense punished by imprisonment for 6 yrs or more except the ____ which shall prescribe in 20 yrs.

3rd MEETING

The SSS is a pay-as-you-go system --> thats the system of the Social Security. Thats the main.

The opposite of that is pay-first-before-you-go. When you reach your retirement age, you are paid. But it is the system that absorbs the payment. The present members pay for the ones who retire now. Tomorrows members will in turn be paid by those who will be contributing to the system. So the system right from the start, bcoz there are those who began retiring right from the beginning of the system, is already paid by those contributing at that time. So, what does that mean? It means that the system begins with a DEBT. And just to stay in place, it must run. Sugod ug utang ba. Kay sige naman ug bayad bisag wa pa makapundo para ibayad. PAY-AS-YOU-GO man. When you have to go, you are paid. Nagsugod na ang system with an utang. Situation: Contribute for retirement benefit. After retirement, get a lumpsum retirement benefit (e.g. 7M php).

Question: Is that a pay-as-you-go system? NO! You pay first b4 you retire. You finance your own retirement. That is not a pay-as-you-go system. SSS is not like that. There are already those who retired even if they did not contribute because its granted. It is aid precisely for low income wage earners. Thats why it is called a SAFETY NET.

All wage earners are walking on a tight wire. Why? Trabaho ka, kayod ka, naa kay sweldo, buhi ka. Wa ka nay sweldo, di ka na mabuhi, mahulog ka na, kinsa may musalo nimo? SSS. Mabuti na lng, may SSS (dba noh, commercial). Thats it. Thats why, it is also called a SAFETY NET. It is assumed that you pay for your own ____. Kinahanglan man ka mukaon. Kinsa man ang mangita anang imong pagkaon? Ikaw. Naa man kay pamilya na buhion, kinsa may maningkamot niana? Ikaw. Daw beh kung ikaw di na makahimo niana, hulog ka. The SAFETY NET is SSS. Katong mga nahulog, salu-on sa safety net. So its a safety net. Now, what Im saying is that, that is not enough. If you rely on the SSS, you might be putting more reliance on something that cannot respond in full to your needs with the contingencies. So you must really try to provide for your own retirement --> an alternative. Something else that you set aside. Because we presume, SSS will not be enough. Story: Husband and wife worked in the USA went back here in the Phils. to retire. They feel that their retirement benefit in the USA is not enough thats why they went back here. --> thats good because their retirement has a comparative benefit here. Kita muadto ug SSS asa man ta mu-retire? Asa man ta mudagan?

NOTE:

Types of benefits granted by the SSS:

) Sickness

) Maternity

) Disability

) Retirement

) Death

) Funeral

SPECIFIC BENEFITS PROVIDED BY THE SSS:

) Retirement benefit- cash benefit, either in MONTHLY PENSION or LUMPSUM paid by a member who can no longer work due to old age.

Who qualifies for retirement benefit?

Member who is 60yrs old, separated from employment or ceased to be self-employed and has paid at least 120 monthly contributions prior to the semester of retirement.

120 monthly contributions = 10 yrs.

10 yrs ka ga-contribute, broken or continuous.

120 months, you qualify for retirement benefits. Member who is 65 yrs old whether employed or not and has paid at least 120 monthly contributions prior to the semester of the retirement.

-Bcoz the maximum retirement age under the Labor Code is 65 for ordinary workers.

-If the company does not have a peg retirement age, then at 60, you can already retire under the SSS. Bcoz retirement benefits under the LC is 1/2 month for every year of service -- that is the retirement benefit. And for somebody who has worked for at least 5 yrs and must reach the retirement age of the company policy, which in no case shall be more than 65 yrs of age. So thats the maximum age. Your retirement benefits under the LC vests in 5 yrs. You are entitled to the retirement benefit of 1/2 month for every year of service, plus 1/12 of 13th month for every year of service, plus 5 days service incentive leave (SIL) which equals 22.5 days wages per year of service. Mao na imong madawat sa imong employer over and above SSS. SSS is separate.

Now, there are special workers which have a lower retirement age. Who are those workers? UNDERGROUND MINE WORKERS who have reach the age of 55, underground mine worker for at least 5 yrs, either continuous or accumulated prior to the semester of retirement, but whose actual date of retirement is not earlier than March 30, 1998, or separated from employment or in case of self-employed, has ceased to be self-employed and has paid at least 120 monthly contributions prior to the semester of retirement.

Is it possible to be an underground mine worker and you are self--employed?

WHY NOT?! If you are in Diwalwal and you own a tunnel and ikaw ra say nagsu-ong su-ong didto? Unya 5 ka ka-tuig nagsu-ong su-ong didto. Underground worker, self-employed ka.

Kinsa may mu-certify ana na naa ka sa underground? Muadto ka sa brgy. Captain, detachment commander

or has reached 60 yrs old, whether employed or not and has paid at least 120 monthly contributions prior to the semester of retirement

TYPES OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS:

) Monthly pension- is a lifetime cash benefit paid to a retiree who has paid at least 120 monthly contributions to the SSS prior to the semester of retirement. ) Lumpsum amount- is granted to a retiree who has not paid the required 120 monthly contributions. It is equal to the total contributions paid by the member and by the employer, including interest.

So, sa ato pa kung naka-contribute ka ug 9 yrs and a half, pila man? 114 monthly contributions. Kulang man kag tunga sa tuig. Unya ang tunga sa tuig 6 months man na. So retire ka, abot na ka ug 60 or 65, muingon ka na sayang man akong kuan, kulang ug 6 months, padayon lng usa ko ug contribute, di lng usa ko muretire. Mahimo? Diba once you are severed from employment, you can still continue your membership on a VOLUNTARY BASIS. Pwede ba ka muingon na SSS, stop, huwat kay magpadayon ko ug bayad for 6 months aron maka full benefits ko. Mahimo? I would surmise that if you are below 65, the absolute age for retirement, pag mga 60 ka na mag voluntary continue pa ka for 6 months para kaabot jud ka sa retirement benefits. After that, 120 na, full benefits na. But if you are already 65 and you still have 6 months, the maximum retirement age is 65, so you cannot continue anymore.

Now, if you are less than 120 months contribution, what happens? You are just given a LUMPSUM. How much is that? The sum total of your contribution plus interest.

Now, take note, GSIS retiree ka, you are qualified sa GSIS, your retirement benefits is completed and you are given a choice to get a lumpsum of 5 yrs on the date of your retirement --- ihatag na imung 5 yrs saimo madawat. And then, if you survive, until the end of the 5th year, magsugod na imung monthly na retirement benefit. Pero ihatag daan imung 5 yrs. Mamatay ka within that 5 yrs, alkanse and GSIS, gihatag naman niya ang 5 yrs nimo na lumpsum. Mao na almost everybody elects a lumpsum. Unhan na lng nato kay tingali ba naman ug mukirig pa ta, ma-heart attack, edi sayang. GSIS ana.

Now, assuming you have paid 120, how much will monthly pension of the SSS retiree will receive? The monthly pension will depend on the members paid contributions, including the credited years of service and the number of dependent minor children but not to exceed 5. The amount of monthly pension will be the highest of (now this is the formula):The sum of P300 + 20% of the average monthly salary credit + 2% of the average monthly salary credit for each credited year of service in excess of 10 yrs or 40% of the average monthly salary credit or P1200, provided that the credited years of service is less than 20 or P2400, if the credited years of service is 20 or more, the monthly pension is paid for not less than 60 months.

The retiree has the option to receive the first 18 monthly pension in lumpsum. Discounted at the preferential rate of interest to be determined by the SSS.

So, lumpsum for full benefits of SSS is only 18 monthly ___. Pagretire nimo daan, qualified ka, kuha ka ug lumpsum 18 months, kwentahon na nimo daan, mamatay ka within that 18 months, alkanse ang SSS kay patay naman ka. Mabuhi ka pa, 18 months later, magsugod ka ug kuha ug monthly pension benefits. The highest being P2400/month. The gargantuan sum of P2400.

The option shall be exercised upon filing of the first retirement____ only advanced payment shall be discounted____. Independents pension and 13th month pension are excluded from the 18 months lumpsum pension. The member will receive the monthly pension on the 19th month and every month thereafter.

Now, remember that this law called PARTIAL PORTABILITY SYSTEM.

If you are moving from one system to another, lets say, from GSIS to SSS (e.g. Govt worker before pero nibalhin ka sa private. Gikapoy na ka mahimong fiscal/PAO lawyer so nagprivate practice ka. Self-employed na ka. Gabayad ka na sa SSS. Wala kaau kay contribution sa SSS, pero daghan kaau ka ug contribution sa GSIS.

Q: Is it possible to count your contributions from the GSIS so that you will get the whole benefits in the SSS? YES!As to one benefit ___. Partially, you carry your contributions here so that you will qualify for the 120 months monthly contribution that is required for full benefits for retirement under the SSS. So you count your contributions here, add it to your 50 months contribution, then you will qualify for full retirement benefits. That is the same thing that happen, e.g private practice ka dri sa SSS, self-employed ka, gabayad ka sa SSS, unya na-appointed ka as fiscal, unya 5 yrs ka na prosecutor unya naabot na ka sa 65, di ka mu-qualify sa GSIS, but bcoz of the PARTIAL PORTABILITY LAW, you can get your contributions from the SSS and carry it over to the GSIS for you to qualify. In other words, ITS NOT TOTAL. Dli tanan nimong mga contribution or benefits dra. Dli, kato rang usa magamit nimo once. And you apply it to the most lasting benefit.

Now, what happens when the retiree pensioner resumes employment? Retirees are discouraged from working bcoz of this feature in the law. What does it say?

The monthly pension shall be suspended upon reemployment or resumption of self-employment of the retired member who is less than 65 yrs old. The member shall again be subjected to compulsory coverage. At 65 yrs old, whether employed or not, he can already claim for retirement benefit. -> now this is true if you retire at 60 and the retirement age of your employer is 60. Kng nagtrabaho pa gani ka, your retirement benefit is suspended. Retired man kaha ka unya ngano gatrabaho man diay ka, di diay ka retired? Undang ang imong benefits. Suspended and imong benefits. But then, if you are 65 and you are still working after 65, then you are still entitled to the whole benefits. RETIREMENT BENEFITS.

Monthly pension of a member who retires after age 60 and who has contributed the required 120 monthly contribution. The monthly pension shall be higher of the ff:

) Monthly pension completed at the earliest time the member would have retired, had he been separated from employment or ceased to be self-employed plus all adjustments thereto; or

) Monthly pension completed at the time when the member actually retires.

A pensioner who retires more than once shall be entitled to the higher of the monthly pension completed for the first retirement pay, or the recomputed monthly pension or the _____.

How is the monthly pension paid? It is paid thru ATM. A member must open a single savings account. He must submit to the SSS the savings account number and a photocopy of his passbook upon filing of his application. The original copy of his passbook must be presented for authentication. For ATM, the name of the member must be embossed on the ATM card, otherwise a copy of the deposit slip must be submitted. Upon approval of the claim, the SSS will mail a notice for ___ to the claimant informing him when to withdraw the benefit from the bank.

Aside from the retirement benefit, what else can a retiree receive? A retiree is entitled to 13th month pension payable every December. Ah, naa pajud diay 13th month pension. Mao man na ang panghambog sa SSS na gimail na ang 13th month pension. That is additional lng ha, it is not in the statute.

All retiree pensioners prior to the effectivity of RA 7875 or March 4, 1985 are automatically considered members of PHILHEALTH and he and his legal dependents are entitled to to its hospitalization benefits. On the other hand, retirees effective March 4, 1985 up to the present will be entitled to hospitalization benefits under medicare only if they they have contributed 120 monthly medicare contributions. The counting of the 120 monthly contributions shall start in 1972 when the medical care act of 1969 shall have started ____. So you are still entitled to medicare even if you are retired, provided that you have made the 120 month full contributions.

Are the children of retired members entitled to dependents pension? The legitimate, legitimated or legally adopted and illegitimate children conceived on or before the date of retirement of the retiree will each receive the dependents pension equivalent to 10% of the members monthly pension, or 250, whichever is higher. Only 5 minor children beginning from the youngest are entitled to the dependents pension. No such substitution is allowed. If there are more than 5 dependents, the legitimate, legitimated or legally adopted children shall be preferred.

How long will the children receive the pension? The dependents pension stops when the child reaches 21 yrs old, gets married, gets employed or dies. However, the dependents pension is granted for life to children who are over 21 yrs old, provided they are incapacitated or incapable of self-support due to physical or mental disability which is congenital or acquired during minority.

Mongoloid is not the right term bcoz that is an insult to the nationals of Mongolia. The WHO said that the proper term should be, children with down syndrome. They are entitled even if they are beyond 21 if they are congenital or acquired, mental or physical disability. Can you just imagine how many people the SSS is supporting, even though its only 250php a month.

Now, in case of death, what will happen to the monthly pension of the retiree in case of death? Upon death of the retiree pensioner, the primary beneficiaries as of the date of retirement shall be entitled to 100% of the monthly pension of the dependents pension.

PRIMARY BENEFICIARIES:

) Spouse until he/she remarries;

) legitimate children or legitimated

If the retiree pensioner dies within 60 months from the start of the monthly pension, has no primary beneficiaries, the secondary beneficiaries shall be entitled to a lumpsum benefit, equivalent to a total monthly pension corresponding to the balance of the 5yr guarantee period, including the dependents pension.

Who are the secondary beneficiaries?

SECONDARY BENEFICIARIES:

) Parents -- way asawa, way anak, perents ang mahimong secondary beneficiary. Naay asawa, naay anak, way secondary.

So we now know the retirement benefits. There is a guaranteed limit for 18 months. Remember the rule, 60.65. You will get a monthly pension if you contributed for at least 10yrs. (120 monthly contributions). Less than that, you will get a lumpsum. Sumtotal of employees contribution plus interest.

DOCUMENTS NEEDED IN FILING FOR RETIREMENT BENEFITS

(pagnagretire na mo pangitaa ni ninyo kai napulo ni kabuok)

DEATH BENEFIT

Remember, this is not work-related death. This is ordinary death. Kamatayon sa banig, that is the SSS death. Kamatayon sa trabaho, that is the employees compensation (EC). This is not employees compensation.

Cash benefit: either in monthly pension or lumpsum pay to the beneficiaries of the deceased member.

) Monthly pension - is granted to the primary beneficiaries of the deceased member who had paid 36 monthly contributions before the semester of death.

) Lumpsum - the amount granted to the primary beneficiaries of a deceased member who has paid less than 36 monthly contributions before the semester of death the secondary beneficiaries paid shall be entitled to a lumpsum benefit.

So, mas mubo ang kinahanglan. 36 only monthly contributions. If less, lumpsum. If 36 monthly pension benefits to the primary beneficiaries.

Who are the beneficiaries of the deceased?

PRIMARY BENEFICIARIES:

) Legitimate dependent spouse until the person remarries;

) legitimate, legitimated or legally adopted children and illegitimate children of the member who are not yet 21 yrs old

In the absence of primary beneficiaries, the dependent parent shall be the secondary beneficiaries. In their absence, any other person designated by the member as beneficiary in the members record -- this is very important bcoz time and again this has been asked in the bar examinations. In the absence of the secondary beneficiaries, wa ganiy primary, wa ganiy secondary, any other person designated by the member as beneficiary in the members record.

They will give you a problem (BAR Q):

Mr. Juan dela Cruz is a heavy equipment operator in a construction company. He has given 20 yrs contribution to the SSS. The wife is already dead. He has 5 children. Just before he died of a heart attack, bcoz he loved balbacua every Friday, kanang halang2x na balbacua, paresan nimo ug Vino Kulafu. The youngest of his 5 children turned 21 the day before he died. In the meantime he has changed the beneficiaries in his record. He put there the name of his favorite waitress when he goes to the siga-palong beerhouse. The following go to the SSS to ask for his death benefits:

a. 5 children;

b. Sister of the deceased spouse; and

c. The waitress who took time out from her job in the siga-palong beerhouse

Who has the rightful claim?

Wa namay primary kay patay naman. Ang iyang mga anak primary unta to kung below 21 pa pero di naman. Unsa man sila? With down syndrome, wa man. They are all married. They may put there that they are already married without work, but they dont have down syndrome. They are not primary beneficiaries. Who is the rightful beneficiary? Any other person designated by the member as beneficiary in the members record.

ANS: Katong waitress sa siga-palong beerhouse mao tong rightful beneficiary.

Wa man cyay secondary kay patay naman ang iyang ginikanan. Time and again, they ask that question in different variations in the bar examination. Butangan nila ug above 21 na ang anak, unya polyo, unya nasakit pa jud ug meningitis. Kung ana, set aside tong person na designated by the member as beneficiary. So pay attention to this. This is the tricky part for death benefits.

4TH MEETING

Are the children of the deceased member entitled to dependents pension?

The dependent, legitimate, legitimated or legally adopted and illegitimate children conceived on or before the date of death of the deceased will each receive on or before the date of the death of the deceased will each receive dependents' pension equivalent to ten percent (10%) of the monthly pension or Two hundred fifty pesos (P250.00), whichever is higher.

Remember the limit is 5 minor children dependent. If you have more than 5, e.g., you have 7 children, only 5 will get it. 250php each. But it is beginning from the youngest. Not beginning from the eldest.

Legitimate, legitimated and legally adopted children shall be preferred.

And the illegitimate children will loose out to the legitimate.

How long will the dependent children receive the pension? Pension stops when the child reaches 21 years old or if he gets married, gets employed or dies.

The moment you are employed you stop the pension.

What is the employment? He is now a barker. A jeepney barker. Whats a jeepney barker? (lol! :D) ( Youre all qualified, but you will not last.

If you are employed as a barker, you are still eligible. Why? Bcoz, its the employment in the informal sector.

So by employment here is meant mainly from the formal sector.

E.g. You are already working bcoz you have already won the Pinoys Got Talent and you already signed a recording contract. Then the pension stops. Even though youre a minor if youre employed.

So you see, this is one of the problems of the SSS. There is a disincentive _______.

Remember, retirement benefits is when you reach 60. When you reach 60, youre already eligible. But if you stop working, it is suspended. It will resume if you finally reach 65. So people are discouraged. There is a disincentive benefit

Now, I dont know what is the amount of the funeral benefits now. Bcoz it says here that the funeral grant is P20K. They must have increased this.

Now, the documents needed in filing the death and funeral benefits:

Death certificate of a deceased member duly certified by a Local Civil Registrar.

Filers ______

The savings account of the claimant ( passbook, ATM card

Report of death and cause of death is work connected.

SSS form ( If the claimant is the legal heir, then there is another form.

Photo of the filer and valid ID

If you are the son and you claim, you are the filer, your photo is required.

If married, that is the deceased, the marriage certificate of the deceased and the birth certificate duly certified by the LCR.

If single, the deceased members birth certificate and the marriage certificate of the parents, duly certified by the LCR.

If with illegitimate dependent children, proof of filiation such as the record of birth, the will, statement before a court in any authentic writing document.

If the beneficiaries are incapacitated or dependent children, application for the representative payee, guarantors form and in trust form, single savings account and medical certificate of incapacitated dependents ( Now this is the exception for the special proceeding on guardianship bcoz normally there should be court order on guardianship for dependents. Bcoz this is SSS, this is streamlined administratively, bcoz it is so cumbersome for the judicial proceeding for the appointment of guardian.

(Cotabato story) You cannot file SSS in Cotabato. 2 branch managers have already given up the ghost. Applications of death benefits there are more numerous than the entire death benefits of Mindanao.

Salary loans, you know in the SSS law, salary loans is just mentioned as a passing benefit. But it seems to be the main preoccupation of the SSS. But that is not the basic reason why the SSS is created. It is for the purpose of answering those basic contingencies:

Death

Old age/retirement

Sickness

*Those are the basic contingencies. So salary loans is really an additional.

SICKNESS BENEFIT

Sickness. What is the sickness benefit of the SSS?

Sickness benefit is a daily cash allowance paid for a number of days a member is unable to work due to sickness or injury.

Now if you are an SSS member, how will you qualify for sickness benefit?

-When you also have employees compensation sickness benefit for work-related sickness. Then you also have employers sickness benefit like sick leave. Many employers grant sick leave.

Does the law grant the employees to claim from their employer a sick leave? Theres NONE! Theres only 5 days Service Incentive Leave (SIL) and that can be given for sickness or for vacation. Theres no distinction. Thats the only leave that you can claim from the employer under the Labor Code. In special law, there are other kinds of leaves, like MATERNITY LEAVE -- you can claim that if your wife gives birth and its only for ____. SOLO PARENT LEAVE -- that is for sickness of children for solo parent. That is not for sick leave. VAWC LEAVE -- that is for internal family conflict. That is not for sick leave.

So for sickness, only 5 days SIL. It might amuse you to learn that that is the same way in the USA. There is no mandatory sick leave. There is also no mandatory vacation leave granted by the laws of the USA. Obama is now trying to pass a law that will grant sick leave, and I dont think that he can pass that now in a Republican House of Representatives and Senate.

When can you get sickness benefit from the SSS? These are the requirements (How does an SSS member qualify for sickness benefit?):

) He is unable to work due to sickness or injury and confined either in a hospital or at home for at least 4 days. -- so there is no SSS sickness benefits for less than 4 days.

) He has paid at least 3 months of contributions within the 12-month period immediately before the semester of sickness or injury. -- if you pay for contributions for at least 1 yr, then you are entitled to sickness benefit.

) He has used up all company sick leaves with pay -- VERY IMPORTANT! -- So if your employer gives you sick leave benefits, you have to completely use up those benefits.

4.) He has notified the employer, or the SSS, if unemployed, voluntary or self-employed member, regarding the sickness or injury.

The employer records it in the diary. The employer must keep a logbook for SSS claim for employees compensation (EC). Thats where the employer records notice of pregnancy. It has to be recorded also. Di man ka pwede muingon na, manganak na ko, you have to report first if you are pregnant to eliminate simulated pregnancy. E.g. Naay uban na masayangan na di nila makuha ang maternity benefits, imbes na anak sa ilang igsuon, ilang angkunon na ila para makakuha sila ug maternity benefits from the SSS. How do you prevent that? Once you are pregnant, you report it to your employer and the employer reports it to the SSS.

E.g. 56 yr old has 2 children, what if she gets pregnant? -- like when she undergoes artificial insemination. How many more can she have? 2 more. Can the SSS object bcoz she is already 56 yrs old? That will be a question of first impression to the SC.

So he must used up all company sick leaves with pay.

How much sickness benefit is a member entitled to receive? The amount of sickness benefit per day is equivalent to 90% of the employees average daily salary. There is a formula. It is never the same amount equivalent to your daily salary. Its always lower than your daily average salary. Remember I told you in maternity benefits, the one that will give you maternity benefits is the employer who will advance it. And then you will sign a waiver that ____ to the SSS that will now be endorsed to the employer, bcoz the employer advances your ____.

Now, what the employer usually does is he will just compute your daily salary and will give it to you. But the reimbursement is actually less than your daily salary bcoz it is average daily salary credit. So what happens is, the employer actually subsidizes the difference.

Now, why is it that the system is such that will not pay you the whole daily salary but it is lower, it is the average salary credit? There is known in INSURANCE LAW as COEFFICIENT OF INSURANCE. In other words, if it were for the full amount, the full amount is an invitation to abuse. If you do not suffer anything, it will engender abuse. Thats why, they make it less. That goes with all insurances.

Your car insurance for let us say, own damage. There is always that feature that the first 2000 you pay, it lessens the actual amount of recovery to damage. What is that? That is COEFFICIENT OF INSURANCE. To discourage you from abusing. If it were not for that amount, what will happen? E.g. Wa man diay ni musiga ang akong rear light, atras dayon nimo imung sakyanan. Gituyo nimo na gub-on. Adto dayon ka sa insurance. Pangutan-on ka na pila man na ang damage? Muinon ka na 1k. Imo na ang unang bayranan. The 1st 1k ikaw ang mubayad. That is the abuse if you are completely paid with the recoverable amount. So that is COEFFICIENT OF INSURANCE. You are never paid the entire loss. In SSS, what is the loss? The loss is INCOME bcoz of sickness.

Now, is this separate and distinct from PHILHEALTH? Remember, PHILHEALTH does not pay you for loss of income. It pays you for hospitalization. Certain amount for hospitalization, for medication, medicines, doctors fees, and then, PHILHEALTH is not merciful to ordinary sicknesses. Kinahanglan na hospitalized ka. Kng dli ka mahospitalized, dli ka makakubra sa PHILHEALTH. Sipon lng, bisag unsa kagahi sa sipon nimo, di ka macover sa PHILHEALTH. Kinahanglan naa ka sa hospital. So its an invitation to commit fraud. Mao na ang uban manikas na lng na iingon nila na nahospitalize sila aron makarecover lng sila sa PHILHEALTH.

So, the sickness benefit for loss of income, the amount of sickness benefit per day is equivalent to 90% of the members average daily salary.

How is the sickness benefit computed?

) You exclude the semester of sickness, the semester of first of 2 consecutive quarters, ending in the quarter of sickness. A quarter of the first of 3 consecutive months, ending March, June, September or December. You count 12 months backwards starting from the month immediately before the semester of sickness, then you identify the 6 highest monthly salary credits within the ____. -- Very complicated.

How many days in a year can a member avail of sickness benefit? What is the maximum? A member can be granted a sickness benefit for a maximum of 120 days in 1 calendar year. That is 1/3 of a calendar year. Any unused portion of the allowable 120 days sickness benefit can be carried forward and added to the total number allowed for ____ the following year.

The sickness benefit shall not be paid for more than 240 days for account of the same illness. If the sickness or injury will persist after 240 days, it will be considered as a disability benefit. -- sickness kay mulutaw na sa disability if muexceed na ug 240 days.

Q: Ngano man na 120 days ra man unta ang maximum, unya ngano na 240 mana? Wa ka makasabot kay tingali nagstruggle na sa 2 ka calendar year. It becomes 240 because it is for 2 calendar years.

Now, if an employee fails to inform the employer the sickness that is now covered by the sickness benefit, or there is a delay in the notification, what is the consequence?

) If the employee notifies the employer of the SSS, or in case of an unempolyed, self-employed or voluntary paid member beyond the prescribed 5-day period, the confinement shall be deemed to have started not earlier than the 5th day immediately preceding the date of ____.

) If the employer notifies the SSS beyond the 5 calendar days after the receipt of the notification from the employee, the employer shall be reimbursed only for each day of confinement starting from the 10th calendar day immediately preceding the date of notification to the SSS. -- So if its the employer who is delayed to notify the SSS.

3.) If the employee has given the notification to the employer, but the employer fails to notify the SSS of the confinement within the prescribed period resulting in the reduction of the benefit or denial of the claim, the employer shall have no right to recover the days of allowance advanced to the employee. --So it is the employer who will answer.

So, now, self-employed, voluntary member --e.g. Husband na wa na nitrabaho unya gipadayon ra gihapon niya. Iyang wife gipadayon ra gihapon sad voluntary basis, they are now eligible for sickness benefit. Added burden to the SSS. They are hoping that they will get benefit from the SSS based on their voluntary contributions, but actually, its an added burden to the SSS.

Where does a member file a claim for sickness benefit?

EMPLOYED MEMBERS:

Claims must be filed in the SSS servicing branch. Processing of the claim from that branch where employer and employee records is placed.

SELF-EMPLOYED/SEPARATED/VOLUNTARY:

Claims must be filed at the SSS branch that has jurisdiction over your area or place of residence. Processing is done at the branch where the record is placed. So that you would not be inconvenienced, if you are a separated/voluntary/self-employed member, you can file it in the SSS branch where you are living. Not necessarily the SSS branch that has jurisdiction over your former employer.

SO WE HAVE COVERED ALL THE BENEFITS FOR THE MEMBERS OF THE SSS.

-end-