Recap: Geeks On A Beach, Boracay

Posted on September 28, 2013 by Stephen Jagger

Geeks On A Beach – Boracay Island, Philippines – Tina Amper of TechTalks.ph put together a fantastic conference on one of the most beautiful islands in the world last week. The event was the first of its kind for the Philippines and was a big success. Over 300 geeks, investors and speakers descended on the white beaches of Boracay for 2 days of learning, networking and sun.

While there we some nay sayers suggesting a beach location was not the right fit for an event like this, I found it perfect. (Boracay is SEAsia’s Las Vegas) It attracted attendees from all over the world, into a very cost effective location (when compared to places like Singapore) that provided a quality venue, attractions outside of the conference and plenty of hotel options. Overall the event was a big success and hopefully will run next year and many after that.

I was invited to be a guest on a panel with Jack Madrid (President DCOM) moderating the “Philippine Startup Success Stories” along with Mark (CEO, Caresharing), Alvin (Director, Microsoft) and Stefano (TwitMusic.com). It was a fun panel discussion. You can see the video of the panel below.

How you commute to Boracay

Geeks On A Beach, Boracay Island, Philippines

#AdventureEngineer Ronald Maravilla Packs For Whistler

Posted on September 28, 2013 by Stephen Jagger

Ronald Maravilla, a native of the Philippines has been working with Mike Stephenson and myself since 2009. When Ron joined us it was for Ubertor, our real estate software company. When PayrollHero got off the ground a year and a half ago, Ron moved over to PayrollHero and joined as the second engineer building out the first stages of the platform.

Today is a big day!

Ron has been accepted into Canada under the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program and will be moving to our Whistler office as part of his #AdventureEngineering dream.

What is an #AdventureEngineer you ask? It is a term we coined as part of our offering to attract smart, hard working, talented enginners who wanted to work hard and play hard. This video sums it up:

Part of what PayrollHero offers to new team members is help with immigration into Canada. Interested in a job, you can see our available roles here – (Ruby) (iOS)

Join us!

What is PEZA? (Philippine Economic Zone Authority)

Posted on September 7, 2013 by Stephen Jagger

PEZA is the Philippine government agency tasked to promote investments, extend assistance, register, grant incentives to and facilitate the business operations of investors in export-oriented manufacturing and service facilities inside selected areas throughout the country proclaimed by the President of the Philippines as PEZA Special Economic Zones.

There are PEZA zones, PEZA approved buildings and PEZA approved companies. Tax holidays and other special benefits are just part of the program. You can see more about PEZA and how they can help your business here.

In the video below you can hear a bit more about PEZA from Bryce Maddock of Taskus.com (@ 5:00 mark):

What is the SSS? (Philippines)

Posted on September 6, 2013 by Stephen Jagger

Interested in PayrollHero? Sign up today and get 90 days free! – USE PROMO CODE 90SSSBP2018

The Philippine Social Security System (SSS) is a social insurance program for employees in the Philippines. Founded in 1957, the SSS is a government agency that provides retirement and health benefits to all paid up employees in the Philippines. Members of the SSS can also make ‘salary’ or ‘calamity’ loans. Salary loans depend on the monthly salary of the employee. Calamity loans are for such times when there is a calamity that has been so declared by the government, in the area where the SSS member lives, such as flooding, earthquake and natural disasters.

Philippine Federal Government Employees don’t contribute to SSS instead they have their own agency called the Government Service Insurance System or GSIS.

More details on the SSS in the Philippines.

Are you setting up a new business in the Philippines? Check out PayrollHero.ph for your time, attendance, scheduling, HRIS, analytics and Philippine payroll needs.

What are the 2013 Holidays in the Philippines?

Posted on September 6, 2013 by Stephen Jagger

What are the Holidays in the Philippines for 2013?

The Philippines has a few holidays that are broken up into Special and Regular Holidays. You can see the Proclamation from the President of the Philippines here.

Here are the 2013 Regular Holidays:

New Year’s Day – January 1st 2013
Maundy Thursday – March 28th 2013
Good Friday – March 29th 2013
Labor Day – May 1st 2013
Independence Day – June 12th 2013
National Heroes Day – August 26th 2013
Bonifacio Day – November 30th 2013
Christmas Day – December 25th 2013
Rizal Day – December 30th 2013

Here are the 2013 Special (Non-Working) Holidays:

Black Saturday – March 30th 2013
Ninoy Aquino Day – August 21st 2013
All Saints Day – November 1st 2013
Additional Special (Non-Working) Day – November 2nd 2013
Additional Special (Non-Working) Day – December 24th 2013
Last Day of the Year – December 31st 2013

Special Holiday (for all schools):

EDSA Revolution Anniversary – February 25th 2013

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You can see the complete details of the 2013 Philippine holidays here.

Keep in mind some of the provinces, cities and towns have their own holidays so depending on where your office is will depend on if you need to observe those. (example)

Click here for more details on PayrollHero’s Philippine Payroll