MANILA, Philippines – The Senate of the Philippines will implement a work-from-home (WFH) scheme and skeletal workforce arrangement for its employees starting April 6 as part of efforts to reduce operational costs and conserve energy during the legislative recess.
In a memorandum dated March 16, Senate Secretary Mark Llandro Mendoza announced the temporary work setup, which will be enforced while Congress is on recess from March 21 to May 3.
Mendoza said the measure follows a directive from the Office of the President of the Philippines requiring government agencies to adopt policies that promote the prudent and efficient use of public resources.
Under the guidelines, all Senate employees are required to report on-site every first Monday of the month, while work on the remaining Mondays will be conducted remotely.
Personnel from essential offices, including maintenance, security, medical services, records management, and legislative services, will continue to report under a skeletal workforce arrangement, depending on the requirements set by their department heads.
From Tuesday to Thursday, the Senate will also operate under a skeletal workforce system. Department heads will determine which employees must report physically to the office and which may work remotely.
To further reduce energy consumption, centralized air-conditioning inside the Senate complex will operate only from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the first Monday of each month and from Tuesday to Thursday, with thermostat settings maintained at 24 degrees Celsius.
“These measures shall be applied only during the Senate session recess,” Mendoza said, adding that the guidelines will remain in effect until further notice.
SENATE TRIMS OPERATIONS DURING RECESS
The Senate typically observes a session break during major legislative recess periods to allow lawmakers to return to their constituencies and conduct committee work outside plenary sessions.
During this period, administrative operations continue but are often adjusted to minimize costs and operational demands.
In recent years, government offices have increasingly adopted flexible work arrangements such as remote work and skeletal staffing, particularly following operational changes introduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
These measures have since been used periodically to reduce energy consumption and manage government spending during periods of reduced legislative activity.