Philippine Mayor Gives Singles Extra Pay On Valentine’s Day
Category: World News
Lonely hearts at General Luna town hall in Quezon province will receive three times their normal daily wage if they have been single for more than five years, Mayor Matt Florido told AFP.
Other footloose and fancy-free staff will get double pay — or the option to take a paid day off.
“I know what they’re going through today, I feel for them,” said Florido, 42, who says he has been single “since birth”.
“On Valentine’s Day no one will give them chocolates, flowers… so we thought of giving them this kind of incentive so they can also feel someone cares for them, someone loves them.”
It is the third year in a row that Florido has handed out bonus payments to singletons in local government.
Of the 289 town hall employees, 37 qualified for the compensation after passing a stringent vetting process to confirm their claimed single status.
Eligible staff were asked questions about when they were last in a relationship, the reasons they broke up, and why they are still single.
The eldest recipient was 64.
“We are just a small town so everyone knows everyone. You can’t hide anything,” said Florido of the pineapple-growing municipality.
Florido said he would finance the 28,000 peso ($511) handout from his own pocket, adding that the money was also an acknowledgement of the demands placed on single staff to work additional hours when needed.
“They have light responsibilities at home so every time we need them to work overtime, when we have relief operations, or lose sleep to serve the town, we can always count on them,” he said.
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