Employee

Workplace
Guide

October 15

2014

This document outlines the Companys human resources practices,

benefits and workplace decorum.

Human
Resources
Practices

Approval:

RAINELDA C. DE BODA
Human Resources Director

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RIZALITO JAY R. CALICA

VP, Human Resources and OD

JACKY V. PLANA II
Head of Operations

Proprietary in Nature
This document is classified as proprietary in nature to PCCW Teleservices. Information
contained in this document is confidential. No part of this document may be copied,
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted without prior written permission
from PCCW Teleservices.

Document Information

Process Title

Employee Workplace Guide

Sub-Title

Part 1: Human Resources Practices

Effective Date

10/15/2014

Version Number

Version 6.0

Document Number
Document Owner

Rizalito Jay R. Calica

Release

Manila Site (Internal)

Change History

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Version No.

Creation / Revision Date

Owner/Modifier

Approved by

4.0

2/2/2009

Eric Jorge L. Villabroza

Eric P. Paragas

5.1

1/3/2011

Jules L. Burton

Eric P. Paragas

6.0

10/15/2014

Rizalito Jay R. Calica

Jacky V. Plana II

A. INFORMATION STRUCTURE
Cover
Document Management Information
Table of Contents
Coverage
Introduction
Our Recruitment Philosophy
Your Employment Status
Personnel Movement & Career Development
Compensation & Benefits
Resignation & Termination of Employment
Workplace Decorum
Attendance and Hours of Work
<End of Part 1>

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2
3
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7-9
10-15
15-16
17-20
21-24
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B. COVERAGE
This Employee Workplace Guide shall apply to all employees of PCCW Teleservices
(Philippines) Inc.

C. INTRODUCTION
We strongly believe in the creation of a human resource management system thats efficient
and effective to bring in the best talents that will deliver the best results. With this end in
mind, the Human Resource Team commits to perform within an operating model that will:
(1) allow equal employment opportunity, (2) provide a venue for continual competency
development, (3) institute a culture of performance and reward, and a system that will (4)
grow individual career within the organization.

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The Employee Workplace Guide comes in two parts:

Part 1 Provides an overview of PCCW Teleservicess human resources practices in

the areas of recruitment, employee compensation & benefits, performance
management, employment relations and office decorum.

Part 2 Serves as a reference in administering employee discipline, herein

referred to as the Code of Conduct (COC);

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Our Recruitment Philosophy

The key to creating a high-performance PCCW Teleservices Team relies strongly on an
effective method of finding the right person.

PCCW Teleservicess philosophy of finding the right person is simply making sure that each
candidate is assessed using dimensions that are essential to determining the qualification
and fitness of each candidate vis--vis the requirements of the job.

Essentially, finding-the-right-person dimensions include:

a)

Job Fit the persons ability and willingness to do the job;

b) Organizational Fit the person fitness and satisfaction with the organizations mode of
operations, values and culture;
c)

Location Fit the passion to be wherever the job is.

New Employee Induction

If you are a new employee, an induction program has been prepared for you to ease down your
adaptation and integration to PCCW Teleservices. Essentially, you will be introduced to:

PCCW Teleservicess vision, mission, and values for you to fully understand the
organizations business goals, strategies and more importantly, its culture the workplace
norms and way of life;

Your role in the organization to help you understand the importance of what you do. It will
also help you appreciate your contribution and significance to the team, and encourage your
commitment and build passion towards contributing to the achievement of organizational
and individual career goals;

The operational system and tools, the use of which comes handy as you begin your journey
with us; and

Finally, the results expectation, desired work behavior and level of performance necessary to
ensure results.

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Your employment status with us may fall under different terms and conditions
depending on the purpose and circumstances of your hiring.
The status of your employment with us is

a)

Probationary if your employment contract tells that, for a period of not more than six (6)
months, your performance will be observed and evaluated to eventually determine whether
or not you are qualified for a regular position or permanent employment.

b) Regular if you have completed the required probationary period of employment and have
met PCCW Teleservicess standard for regularization, or if, upon hiring, you were given
regular appointment for some special and valid reason.

c)

Project-based if you were hired for a definite term in connection with a specific project or
program.

d) Temporary or Contractual if you were hired for a definite term for the purpose of coping
with temporary increase in workload, or to perform a non-regular job, or as a temporary
replacement to a regular employee who may be on extended leave or on another temporary
assignment.

Also
You are Exempt employee if you are an Executive or a Manager or Supervisor. As such, you are
expected to devote the necessary number of hours to complete your tasks. Your compensation
doesnt change based on actual hours expended because you are paid based on results.

You are Non-Exempt employee if you are eligible for overtime pay in accordance with applicable
laws and are required to complete at least eight (8) working hours per day or the 40-hour
workweek.

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Personnel Movement & Career Development

Performance Management
PCCW Teleservices is committed to supporting the growth and development of all its employees
through an effective performance management system. A key element of performance
management is the translation of business plans and strategies into individual and team
performance targets and competencies to ensure employees are able to contribute in a
meaningful fashion.

PCCW Teleservicess Performance Management System (PMS) is a process of:

a)

Planning and setting job expectations, targets, and commitments;

b) Continuously monitoring performance or non-performance;

c)

Developing an employees capacity to perform;

d) Periodically measuring performance and;

e)

Rewarding excellent performance.

The PMS is designed to create a culture of high performance, accountability for results,
strengthen employee engagement and install a reward system based on superior performance.

The PMS also allows employees to:

Understand how their role contributes to the achievement of the Companys goals and
strategies;
Share the responsibility for the development of their own performance and development
plan and;
Actively participate in discussions regarding performance goals and outcomes relevant to
the objectives of their department/unit and the Company.

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Probationary Employment & Regularization

Employees on probation will receive formal performance review on the fifth month prior to their
completion of the six month probation period. It is the responsibility of first line supervisors and
managers to provide structured feedback on a bi-monthly basis to ensure that probationers are
within tract of their performance objectives and job expectations.

The probation period of six months may be cut short if the probationer shows signs of not being
able to cope with the performance objectives and job expectations. In the same manner, the
probationary status of an employee may be accelerated to regular status if he meets the
performance objectives and expectations and has shown high potential to excel in the job. In
either case, a formal review is necessary to substantiate performance or non-performance of a
probationer.

Promotion
The Company adheres to a policy of promoting from within whenever possible. A decision in
favor of promotion must be based on vacancy or creation of a higher position and evidence that
indicates that there is high probability that the employee being promoted is capable of assuming
increased responsibilities and leadership inherent in the position. This policy enhances the
upward mobility of employees within the organization and its subsidiaries and complements a
business practice which allows internal career development.

Reassignment
To meet exigencies of work or as part of human resource training program, an employee may be
temporarily assigned to another position, provided that such assignment does not exceed three
months. He may, however, choose to remain in the position, in which case he will have to
request for an approval of the transfer.

Transfer
Transfer is a movement from one position to another, which is of equivalent rank, level or salary
without break in the service of the employee. Any inter-department transfer shall be allowed
only upon approval of the head of the releasing department/business unit, in consultation with
the Human Resources Department and upon acceptance of the head of the absorbing
department.

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An employee may be transferred or reassigned from one position to another provided that the
employee does not suffer demotion in position and/or diminution of pay and benefits.

In case of transfer between Programs or Accounts, as applicable, the transferring employee,

upon approval of the transfer, shall tender resignation and must seek clearance from
accountabilities from the Program or Account. This is to ensure that Employee Account
relationship ceases and that all the pertinent provisions in the employment contract signed up by
the employee for such Account are deemed null and no longer applies to the other Accounts.

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Compensation & Benefits

Job Classification & Salary Structure
The Companys compensation system is designed to provide each employee with a salary that is
competitive with other employers in the BPO industry, motivating, fair and equitable. The salary
structure provides a minimum, median and maximum salary range for each job level. An
employees rate of progress through a particular salary range within a job level is dependent on
his(er) ability to cope up and deliver the job objectives and expectations.

Existing positions, job levels and salary ranges are reviewed regularly by the Human Resources
Department. On the basis of any significant findings, the job hierarchy and salary ranges shall be
revised accordingly.

Pay Schedule & Pay Slips

Salaries are paid twice within the month and are deposited in each employees bank account.
Payments of salaries are based on the following payroll schedule:

Days worked from the

st

th

1 to the 15
th

16 to the end of month

Are paid out on the

rd

23 of the month
th

8 of the month

Employees are encouraged to discuss any questions they may have concerning the information
contained in their pay slip during a specific payroll period with their immediate supervisor or the
Human Resources Department. In the same manner, overpayment or underpayment of salaries
must be reported to concerned supervisor or the Human Resources Department as soon as such
overpayment or underpayment is known to the employee.

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Hiring Rate
The Companys hiring rate varies, depending on many factors including the applicants relevant
work experience and performance, applicable education and/or training, and required skills,
knowledge and abilities.

However, as a rule, if a new employee is hired at a salary lower than the minimum of the
prescribed salary range for his(er) particular job level, his(er) salary shall, upon regularization, be
brought to such minimum.

On the other hand, if an employee is hired at or above the minimum of the applicable salary
range, then he shall no longer be entitled to any increase upon regularization of employment.

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Premium Pay
The Company compensates overtime, holiday, and rest day work and night differential premiums
as provided for in the Labor Code of the Philippines. Only non-exempt employees are entitled to
overtime pay and other premiums. Also, only overtime, holiday, and rest day work with previous
authorization shall be paid.

Overtime, holiday, rest day and night shift premiums are paid in accordance with the following
rates:

Work rendered in excess of 8 hours. (Overtime work)

Regular Day

Hourly Rate x 125%

Rest Day or on Special Day

Hourly Rate x 169%

Rest Day which falls on a Special Day

Hourly Rate x 195%

Regular Holiday

Hourly Rate x 260%

Rest Day which falls on a Regular Holiday

Hourly Rate x 338%

Work rendered on a Holiday, Special Holiday, Sunday or Rest Day

Regular Holiday

Daily Rate x 200%

Regular Holiday falling on a Rest Day

Daily Rate x 260%

Special Holiday

Daily Rate x 130%

Sunday and Rest Day

Daily Rate x 130%

Night Shift Differential on work performed between 10:00 in the evening to 6:00 in the morning.

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Regular Day

Hourly Rate x 120%

Sunday/Rest Day

Hourly Rate x Sunday/RD Premium x 120%

Special Holiday

Hourly Rate x Special Holiday Premium x 120%

Regular Holiday

Hourly Rate x Sunday/RD Premium x 120%

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Statutory Benefits

Social Security System

All employees who are not over sixty (60) years of age are covered by the Social Security System
upon the date of employment. Monthly contributions to the system are shared by the Company
and the individual employee, the amount of which depends upon the salary bracket of the
member employee.

Your benefits under the Social Security Law include multi-purpose loans, maternity leave,
sickness, retirement, permanent disability and death benefits.

PhilHealth
Your coverage under PhilHealth is compulsory and automatic subject to coverage by the SSS.
PhilHealth contributions are shared equally by the Company and you in conformity with standard
rate schedule. Your contribution is deducted and withheld by the Company from your salary and
is combined together with the Companys contribution.

As a covered member, you shall be entitled to the benefits under PhilHealth if you meet the
following conditions:

a)

You are confined in a hospital in the Philippines due to illness or injury requiring
hospitalization;

b) You have paid at least (3) monthly contributions within the last twelve (12) months prior to
the first single period of confinement.

Your legal dependents are likewise entitled to the benefits under PhilHealth.

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Pag-IBIG Fund
Upon the date of employment with the Company, you are automatically covered by the Pag-IBIG
administered under the Home Development Mutual Fund. The Company and the member
employee share monthly contributions to the fund. Your benefits under Pag-IBIG include Housing
Loans, Multi-purpose loans and others.

13th Month Pay

th

The 13 month pay shall be equivalent to 1/12 of the total basic salary you earned within the
calendar year provided you have worked for at least one (1) month during a calendar year. The
th

13 month is paid not later than December 24 of every year.

th

If you resign or your services are terminated at any time before the payment of the 13 month
pay, you shall be entitled to your monetary benefit in proportion to the length of time you
started working during the calendar year up to the time of your resignation or termination from
service.

Paternity Leave
A married male employee, whether living together or physically separated because of location of
work, and regardless of employment status shall be entitled to Paternity Leave Benefit of seven
(7) days with pay including allowance. The paternity leave applies to the first four (4) deliveries or
miscarriages of his legal wife. This benefit is to allow the employee to effectively lend support to
his wife in her period of recovery and/or in the nursing of the newly-born child. Paternity leaves
if not availed shall not be converted to cash.

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Company Provided Benefits & Facilities

Paid Time Off
The Company recognizes the importance of granting every employee some respite from work in
order to bring renewed vigor and enthusiasm to the job. Employees may start earning leave
credits immediately after the sixth month of service.

Reference:

Paid Time-Off (PTO) Policy

Health Benefits
The Company provides assistance to all regular employees in time of sickness or injuries that
require hospitalization through a Health Maintenance Program via a Health Care Provider.

Resignation & Termination

Resignation
An employee who shall resign from the Company is required to give Management a written notice
at least thirty (30) days in advance of the effective date of resignation. The employee shall file the
written resignation notice with his(er) first line supervisor or manager. He shall also submit a
signed copy for the Human Resources Department.

After an employee has filed his(er) written notice of resignation and prior to its effectivity date, he
must clear all his(er) accountabilities and other obligations with the Company. All Company
property, records, documents, tools, other paraphernalia and assets in the employees custody
must be surrendered to the management not later than five (5) days immediately preceding the
effective date of resignation.

Termination of Employment
The Company may terminate the services of an employee for any of the just cause enumerated in
the employee Code of Conduct. Termination of employment shall mean cessation of employer-

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employee relationship by the employer. The employee whose services have been terminated for
cause shall permanently disqualify him for re-employment with the Company.

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Workplace Decorum
All employees are encouraged to foster a work atmosphere conducive to productivity. You should
perform whatever tasks you have in hand with order, intensity, and constancy, and upon the
completion of one task, should take up the next.

Confidentiality
At some point in your job, you may be privileged access to Company records and/or personal
information about customers and business partners, including proprietary information, trade
secrets and intellectual property to which the Company holds rights. You are reminded that it is
Companys policy for anyone not to disclose said information without proper authority. To ensure
compliance with this policy, PCCW Teleservices requires that you sign a Confidentiality and Nondisclosure Agreement as a pre-requisite to your employment.

Whereabouts
You should inform your immediate superior of your whereabouts or itineraries on a daily basis to
ensure continuity of communications.

Use of Telephone
Unavoidable personal calls when taken or made should be for the shortest possible time only. In
order to keep telephone lines open for business calls, employees are discouraged to make
personal calls.

The use of the telephone by outsiders in employees respective area is likewise

discouraged, unless it is in connection with the Companys business.

All telephone calls should be answered promptly and all inquiries handled courteously. Greet the
caller pleasantly, courteously and be always at their service.

Use of Office Equipment

Non-employees should be refused politely if they request use of office equipment except in the
use of the telephone. They shall allow the use of office equipment only in cases where the use is
to generate documents in relation with their business with the Company.

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Wearing of Company ID
Company-issued IDs must be worn at all time while inside the Company premises. This is to ensure
that only authorized personnel (whether employees, guests, contractors, etc.) are allowed entry
and exit within the Company premises particularly the high security areas. It also reinforces
discipline and professionalism among all team members.

Use of I.T. Equipment

Company computers are to be used exclusively for business purpose unless authorized otherwise.
Employees are expected to abide by the following guidelines on PC and Internet usage:

a.

Strictly no storage of personal files on your computer.

b.

The Company strictly prohibits use of Illegal software on Company-issued laptops, PC, and
devices.

c.

Any changes to your workstation in terms of hardware and software, for example, must bear
prior approval from the IT Department.

d.

Connecting to the Companys IT communication network is strictly not allowed.

This

particularly pertains to employees personal laptops, PDAs, or other network devices.

e.

Employees are not allowed to change any settings in their computers unless authorized by the
IT Department.
Reference:

I.T Acceptable Use Policy

Access to the Companys IT System

The Company restricts access of office employees to the Companys IT system. Should access be
granted, it should only be used for business purposes only. Access passwords are completely
confidential and are not allowed to be shared with or given to any other person, organization or
third party without the written permission of the IT Department or the Program Manager.

Bringing in and use of file storage devices like USB flash disks, memory sticks, and the like are
restricted.

Reference:

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I.T Acceptable Use Policy

Internet Usage
Use of internet should be in compliance with the following rules:

a.

All bandwidth-heavy applications are banned. Strictly no Video Streaming websites and no
personal downloads/uploads of music, movies or any other type whatsoever.

b.

Strictly no browsing of non-work related sites during work hours. All network traffic is being
monitored and we will not allow any personal use of PCs/Networking equipment during
working hours. No checking of personal email accounts, personal internet browsing, and any
form of chatting. Personal use of systems is allowed during break-time but is restricted to the
bandwidth rule.

c.

Employee must inform the IT Department if there is a need to upload or download a lot of
data from the clients server or any work-related activity. This rule applies both in working
hours and non-working hours.

d.

No installation of any chat programs or visiting of chat websites without the approval of the IT
Department.

e.

Employee contact list for chat programs assigned by the Company is limited to internal Users
only. Outside contacts are restricted.

Food Consumption at the Workplace

Bringing in and consuming of food (of any kind) is not allowed in high security areas. Beverages
may be allowed ONLY using spill-proof (with tightly-sealed lids) and break-proof containers (such
as cups, mugs, tumblers, thermos, bottles, etc).

Corporate Dress Code

The Company regards any employees expression of taste and individuality. However, each
employee must be aware that what he wears to work is a reflection of his own professionalism
and that of the Company.

In general, extremely casual dressing is not considered appropriate for work. Hence,
Employees with client contact should at all times wear appropriate business attire.

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Employees who can be seen by clients in the course of everyday business (people manning
the reception area) should wear appropriate business attire.
All employees must be presentably dressed at all times.
Neatness, cleanliness, and proper personal hygiene should always be observed.

Reference:

APPENDIX D I.T Acceptable Use Policy

Employees whose nature of job requires them to do spiderman job (crawling in the ceiling or
floors to install cables and electrical wirings) shall be allowed to wear t-shirts even without collars
however, this is only applicable during the time they are doing such spiderman jobs, otherwise
they are required to comply with the prescribed dress code.

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Attendance & Hours of Work

Employees must regard coming to work on time, working shift as scheduled and leaving at
the scheduled time, as essential functions of their jobs. Employees are expected to be at
their respective work station on the approved work schedule. If an employee is going to be
late or absent from work, it is the employees responsibility to notify the FLS or the
Workforce Management Team of such tardiness or absence.

For BACK-OFFICE & OPERATIONS SUPPORT

Regular office schedule is from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm for the daytime shift. Schedule of
employees working on the nights shift or on irregular work schedule will be determined by
the concerned department head.
Employees are provided break periods of unpaid one (1) hour meal period. In addition, they
are allowed two (2) fifteen minute breaks within a shift. Taking breaks beyond the allowed
periods, unless devoted to official business is not permitted. Unless specified by the FLS,
break schedule shall be as follows.

For CONTACT CENTER OPERATIONS

Meal periods and breaks for contact center operations are scheduled based on shifting
schedule. The Operations Manager (OM) shall be responsible for establishing meal and break
periods for their respective area of operation to coincide with shifting schedules.

Flexi-Schedule
Flexi-time is an individualized work schedule other than the established 8:00 am to 5:00 pm
working hours. There are times when flexi-time may be required, either because they make
good business or economic sense or because efficiency of the business operation requires
that some employees or group of employees be placed on flexi-time.
If flexi-time is considered as necessary, it shall be authorized on an individual basis by the
employees FLS or when it appears that such policy should be extended to groups of
employees, then approval should be made by Management.
Flexi-time schedule strictly does not apply to the Operations group.

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Work during Public Holidays

The Companys business is driven by customer requirements, thus, the need to meet the
challenging demand for providing an uninterrupted customer support. This dictates that,
under normal conditions and in the absence of any prior and special pronouncement by the
top management, work schedule is proclaimed normal and regular at the instance of the
Philippine public holidays. All works rendered on a holiday will be paid a corresponding
work-on-holiday premium.

Tardiness & Call-in/Call-Out

The Company does not tolerate tardiness because it demoralizes punctual employees and
impairs the orderly operation and economic well being of the Company. Tardiness is defined
as the failure to report for work at the start of the prescribed work schedule, specifically,
reporting for more than 1 minute from the start of the official work schedule.

PCCW Teleservices strictly observes a late is late policy. For purposes of discipline,
employees incurring two (2) occurrences within any 15-day payroll period or a total of three
(3) occurrences within a month, or thirty (30) accumulated minutes of tardiness within a
month, will be subject to corrective action with reference to prevailing Company rules and
regulations.
For newly-hired trainees, allowable number of tardiness occurrences during the training
period is two (2) or thirty (30) accumulated minutes for the duration of the training;

No-Offsetting Policy
Tardiness incurred cannot be offset by rendering extra hours at the end of the respective
shift.
For payroll purposes, cumulative hours of tardiness will be deducted its corresponding
monetary value from the immediately succeeding payroll.
Where the tardiness for the day is for more than four (4) hours, the reporting employee,
unless permitted by the FLS for reason deemed justifiable, shall no longer be allowed to
work. In this case, he shall on that day, be considered as absent without authorized leave
and thereby subject to appropriate corrective action.
Similarly, CALL-OUT (or undertime) disrupts the normal operation of the Company.
However, should CALL-OUT be unavoidable and necessary or emergency in nature, a prior
written request should be submitted to the FLS for approval and transmitted to the
Workforce Management Team for recording. Work hours lost due to CALL-OUT will be
applied against Paid Time-Off (PTO) credits, otherwise deducted from the employees
immediately succeeding pay in the same procedure as tardiness.

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Excused Absence
Unplanned absence causes disruption of work and necessitates reassignment of personnel
and therefore highly discouraged. Such unplanned absence may only be excused subject to
the following considerations and conditions:
a)

The absence must have been permitted by the FLS prior to being absent unless the
absence was unforeseen or could have not been reasonably foreseen;

b) If the absence is due to illness, the employee is responsible for keeping the FLS informed
of his/her progress.

Acceptable Means of Notification

Except under emergency conditions, the employee must directly give the notification to the
FLS. Notification by another employee or person is not acceptable.
Notification must be given two (2) hours prior to the employees work schedule through
phone, stating the cause of such absence and the day and time the employee can be
expected to get back to work. Non-compliance to this requirement will be subject to
applicable corrective action under the Companys Code of Conduct.

Unauthorized Absence and Absence Without Official Leave (AWOL)

Denied permission to be absent
If the request for a leave of absence is denied within reasons and inspite of which, the
employee still absented him/herself, such absence will be considered as AWOL.
Unauthorized extension of leave
Unless with previous authorization from the FLS and/or OM, extensions of leave of whatever
nature will be considered as AWOL.
ALL UNAUTHORIZED ABSENCES will be subjected to appropriate corrective action.

Return-to-Office Procedure
As an employee reports back to work after an absence of more than one (1) day, he/she
must obtain clearance from the FLS.
If the absence is due to illness, the employee must make the absence official by filing a PTO
application.
Employee absences of more than two (2) days will have to be supported by a doctors
certificate to be presented to the FLS and the HRD immediately within 48 hours upon return
to office.

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Overtime
Depending on the need of business or when exigencies of the service so require, an
employee may be asked to render overtime work.
Employees who are tardy or who had call-out must complete the required eight (8) working
hours before they can be allowed to render OT.

Critical Work Day

Clients and service exigencies may require team members to work on public holidays to
complete certain projects and to meet operational needs. Such instance is treated as a
critical work day. If an employee fails to report for on such critical work day/s, the
employee will be subject to appropriate corrective action.

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