Labor groups asked the Wage Board for an additional P136 to the current P466 minimum wage for workers in Metro Manila and nationwide at the start of the panel’s review of the current wage rate in Pasay City yesterday.
The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines-Nagkaisa and the Trade Union Congress Party-list said that it is high time that minimum wage earners be accorded with lost value of the peso and the workers’ lost purchasing power.
“We have been experiencing growth in our economy, but the workers who worked hard for it are wallowing in poverty. They have jobs and most are employed yet they do not benefit from the development. This is highly unfair and grossly unjust to workers and their families. It is a social discrepancy that needs urgent attention from government and employers must take seriously into consideration,” said Rep. Raymond Mendoza in a statement.
For his part, TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay said the real value of the peso has been eroded by 35 percent due to a variety of inflationary factors, including consumer price index, tuition fees, the recent Metro Rail Transit/Light Rail Transit (MRT/LRT) fare hike, and the impending water and electricity rate increases.
“The real value of the current P466 minimum wage is P299 only. It cannot sustain the needs of a family. As a result, many employed workers fall through the cracks and join the growing ranks of the working poor. Thus, we are asking the board to give a ‘living’ minimum wage. We particularly appeal to employers to grant our petition,” he said during the discussion at the 2015 Wage Consultation of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region at the PTTC Building, Gil Puyat Ave., Pasay City.
The board is composed of three government representatives, one each from the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) and two each from the labor and employers’ sectors.
The review process will take about a maximum of two months before deciding on the lawful amount.
The groups noted that a P136 across-the-board and region-wide daily increase is essential if workers are to cope with the increasing prices of commodities and cost of living, if they are to meet the basic needs of their families – even if only partially – and if the country is to give meaning and substance to the policy of equitable distribution of income and wealth.
They added, “Workers and their families have long been suffering from the spiraling costs of basic commodities and services that include food, transportation, electricity and water. We do not even count on our need for clothing, shelter, education and healthcare, which seem to have become a luxury for the poor and a privilege for the few. A decent life is a human right which should be enjoyed by all.” - PNA / Tribune
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