The University of Panama, through a note sent by the Administrative Council, requested the National Budget Directorate of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) to reconsider the repeated rejection of budget transfers required to execute the payment of the annual bonus corresponding to the institution's public servants.
The rector of the higher education house, Dr. Eduardo Flores Castro, explained that, although the applications meet the criteria of "fiscal responsibility, legality and budgetary availability", the procedures have been denied under the concept of expenditure containment.
Therefore, the university administration asked that these arguments be re-evaluated, since —as they indicate— it is a labor commitment backed by the current legal framework.
The Administrative Council of the Mendez Pereira House reminded that this benefit is contemplated in the Collective Labor Convention 2024-2028, published in the Official Gazette, and constitutes an acquired right for the collaborators.
Since the beginning of 2025, the institution has managed various internal transfers with the purpose of strengthening the budgetary item destined for bonuses, supported by real savings generated monthly in the "Personal Services" item; however, of all the applications presented, only one was endorsed in April.
"The remaining ones, which remained unanswered for months, were rejected at the end of June, which affects the fulfillment of labor obligations recognized institutionally and legally," commented the rector.
The institution detailed that the funds come from savings generated by unpaid leave, retirements, resignations and deaths, so that "they do not imply increases in spending, do not affect the global ceiling and do not violate containment measures".
Flores Castro adds that this request adjusts to the responsible management practices established in the current regulation.
The payment of the bonus —indicates the note sent to the MEF— is based on article 103 of the Political Constitution, the Organic Law of the University of Panama that guarantees administrative and budgetary autonomy, the Collective Convention 2024-2028, and agreements of the Academic Council that authorized said disbursement for the 2025 period.
The university administration warned that the repeated rejections despite the technical and legal substantiation presented generate concern in the academic community and compromise the fulfillment of the Collective Convention, a situation that could affect the institutional climate of trust and stability.
