VALENCIA CITY, Bukidnon (October 30, 2025) — The Social Security System (SSS) Bukidnon Branch launched the Run After Contribution Evaders (RACE) 2025 campaign early this October to strengthen employer compliance and protect workers’ rights to social security coverage

The campaign began with field operations, in which officers served notices of violation to eight noncompliant establishments in the cities of Valencia and Malaybalay. The initiative aims to hold employers accountable for unremitted contributions under the Social Security Act by requiring them to settle delinquent accounts, remit outstanding contributions, and pay corresponding penalties within a specified timeframe before the agency files legal charges.

At the launch, SSS Valencia Branch Head Alan Sayon explained that the notice of violation gives employers 15 days from receipt to settle overdue contributions, penalties, and other obligations before the agency forwards their cases for legal evaluation.

“Noncompliant employers are given 15 days from receipt of the notice to respond and settle their obligations before SSS forwards their cases for legal scrutiny,” Sayon said.

Lawyer Kathlene L. Gonzalez-Japuz, SSS Mindanao North Legal Department head, said the agency monitors each case after issuing notices to ensure compliance. She said that SSS conducts follow-up visits and requires submission of payment receipts and updated contribution reports to verify that employers have complied within the prescribed period.

“If employers still fail to remit their employees’ contributions, we will pursue legal action as required by law,” she said.

Japuz added that all employees, whether regular or contractual, must be covered by SSS. “Ang gusto sa SSS nga tanan employees, bisan dili regular, dapat covered ug entitled sa SSS,” she said.

(SSS wants all employees, even non-regular ones, to be covered and entitled to benefits.)

In the field, Cheryl Lynn Mordeno, chief executive officer for the Account Management Section, said some employers report only a few of their workers.

“Naay uban employer nga duha or tulo ra ang ilang i-report. Ang among Account Officers magbisita sa mga establishments aron ma-record ang tanan employees—daan man o bag-o—aron maapil sila sa monthly contribution ug makabenepisyo sa SSS,” she said.

(Some employers report only two or three workers. Our Account Officers visit establishments to record all employees, both old and new, so they can be included in the monthly contribution and receive benefits.)

Mordeno urged all employers to regularly report active, new, and returning workers to ensure their access to benefits and protection under SSS programs. The agency emphasized that returning workers refer to employees who were previously separated from a company and later rehired, or those who resumed employment after a break, such as overseas or seasonal workers.

SSS Bukidnon is intensifying its RACE campaign to reinforce compliance and uphold Filipino workers’ welfare. (Janice Nina C. Lumambas/PIA-10/Bukidnon)