Labor groups expect P150 legislated wage hike

DESPITE recent wage increases in 12 out of 17 regions, organized labor groups remain confident that the proposed P150 across-the-board legislated wage hike will be enacted into law.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) and the Federation of Free Workers (FFF), two of the country's biggest labor organizations, said they were optimistic about the passage of Senate Bill (SB) 2002 after the Senate Committee on Labor and Employment wrapped up the work of the technical working group.

SB 2002, authored by Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, calls for a P150 across-the-board increase in the minimum wage of workers in the private sector across the regions to cushion the impact of surging price spikes, which greatly diminished the take-home pay of minimum wage earners.

"TUCP stands in resolute support of Senate Bill 2002, which advocates for an across-the-board P150 wage increase for workers nationwide, as the Senate Committee on Labor and Employment wraps up the work of the technical working group (TWG) where TUCP consistently and actively participated in," said TUCP Vice President Luis Corral.

"Senate Bill 2002 is a beacon of hope for our workers, offering not just a financial reprieve but a tangible recognition of their invaluable contributions to our society. The proposed across-the-board P150 wage increase is not merely a matter of economics, but of simple justice, common fairness and respect for the worker that sustains our nation's progress," he added.

FFF President Sonny Matula said that while they appreciate the wage hike increases in 12 of the 17 regions of the country, the wage orders issued by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPB) were not enough or insufficient as they failed to address the glaring wage disparities among regions and within the agricultural sector, adding that the wage disparities perpetuate discrimination and hinder economic inclusivity.

"If the Senate and the House can act on the P150 across-the-board wage increase, it would be a significant help for ordinary workers, as it will boost the economy, particularly in rural areas," added Matula.

A counterpart measure, House Bill (HB) 7871, or the "Wage Recovery Act of 2023," has also been filed by House Deputy Speaker Raymond Democrtio Mendoza,

HB 7871 is meant to address the steady decline in the real value of wages due to surging inflation. It has already been approved at the committee level.

Corral said SB 2002 and HB 79871 represent a crucial step in addressing the pressing needs of the labor force, fostering a more equitable economic landscape, and addressing the growing gap between increased labor productivity and stagnant wage levels. 

Corral said SB 2002 and HB 79871 represent a crucial step in addressing the pressing needs of the labor force, fostering a more equitable economic landscape, and addressing the growing gap between increased labor productivity and stagnant wage levels. - By William B. Depasupil / The Manila Times

A day before Labor Day, groups call for end to contractualization, wage increase

A day before the observance of Labor Day, groups Nagkaisa Labor Coalition and Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) on Tuesday called for an end to contractualization among workers.

"We have long and consistently called for a just end to pervasive contractualization of labor, yet the practice of labor-only contracting, job-only contracting and other forms of flexible labor remain prevalent among the working people," KMU chairperson Elmer Labog said in a statement.

Attorney Sonny Matula, chairperson of Nagkaisa and a senatorial candidate, vowed that the labor movement would "defend workers' rights to the last."

"With enough political will, President Rodrigo Duterte and his allies in the Senate can still have a Security of Tenure Law enacted during this Congress," Matula said.

"This will definitely continue the pressure on the Senate, especially its reelectionist senators to openly declare either their support or opposition to the proposed End Endo law,” he added.

Duterte during the 2016 presidential campaign promised to abolish "endo" or the practice of contractualization.

In 2018, Duterte inked Executive Order 51 which prohibits the illegal contracting and sub-contracting of workers “by all parties including cooperatives.”

According to Labog, the said EO as well as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Order 174 in 2017 both failed to solve and instead worsened contractualization in the country.

"This is unacceptable. We cannot legitimize labor-only contractors, who do nothing but recruit and deploy workers, yet maintain supervision over contractual workers on paper," Labog said.

"They connive with principal business owners to deprive workers of security of tenure and other basic labor rights, while avoiding legal and financial obligations,” he added.

Wage increase

Meanwhile, the labor groups also called for an increase in wages, especially the fulfillment of a national minimum wage.

"A significant wage hike is long overdue. The sharp increase in inflation and cost of living has already eroded the value of existing wages. We call for an immediate wage increase and a national minimum wage for all workers in the country," Labog said.

In a separate Balitanghali report by GMA News' Mark Salazar, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) is calling for an additional P710 on the minimum wage of workers in the National Capital Region.

"Tumaas 'yung labor productivity for the past 12 years ng 59 percent pero wala hong kapalit 'yun na real wage increase," Luis Manuel Corral, TUCP vice president, said.

If the Tripartite Wage Board will allow this increase, the minimum wage in Metro Manila will be P1,247, the report said.

For its part, the DOLE said the wage increase will be a long shot.

"Basically ang criteria ay 'yung needs ng workers, isang set 'yun tapos 'yung isa naman 'yung capacity of the employer to pay. Isang set 'yun and then the needs of the economy," Undersecretary Ana Dione said. — By ANNA FELICIA BAJO, RSJ, GMA News

TUCP claims wage hike needed to meet gov’t nutrition norms

THE Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) cited “nutritional deficiency” among workers as the reason for its petition to hike the Metro Manila minimum wage by P710, citing government data for recommended levels of nutrition.

Updated photo Labor Day 2019

The TUCP on Monday filed a petition for a P710 wage increase on top of the P500-537 minimum wage in the National Capital Region (NCR) before the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB).

TUCP President Raymond C. Mendoza said the “Pinggang Pinoy” model produced by the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute (DOST-FNRI) is their “basis for the claim that minimum-wage earners and their families have subsisted on nutritionally-deficient survival meals.”

“Forcing workers and their families to subsist on nutritionally-deficient meals for a long period will definitely have bigger repercussions on business, bigger costs to the government and the economy if (the problem is) continuously ignored,” he added during a press briefing on Monday.

In TUCP’s Petition dated April 29, the group said “Using DoST’s Pinggang Pinoy model and the March 2019 PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority) Media Service Market Price of Selected Commodities, Ateneo Policy Center calculates a daily food requirement in the amount of P734 for a family of four (4) or P61.17/meal/person. A family of five would then require a daily right food budget of P917.50.”

TUCP also described as inaccurate the PSA’s 2018 Household Final Consumption Expenditure (HFCE) Survey, specifically the “Food and alcoholic beverage” estimates, which indicate that a family of five spends P208.83 or P14 per meal/family member daily.

“Clearly, the amount cannot provide for the recommended nutritional requirements for a family of five,” the TUCP said in its petition.

TUCP also said that the P537 minimum wage has long been overtaken by events even though it was implemented in November. “(B)ased on government figures, the real value of P537 daily minimum wage in NCR is only P457…with government-mandated deductions from minimum wage computed at P47.05 daily, the nominal take-home pay of a minimum wage earner is… P416.53/day with a real value of P354.60,” TUCP said.

When asked if the TUCP will be expanding its petition to other regions, Associated Labor Unions (ALU) Vice President for Education Eva B. Arcos said that TUCP is still looking into petitioning other RTWPBs. She added that other wage hike petitions will be close to the P710 TUCP sought for the NCR.

“Nagpa-plano kami (We are planning)to file a petition in Central Visayas. It’s still in process but it will be close to this figure.” she told reporters Monday, after submitting the TUCP petition for the NCR.

The TUCP Policy Office’s Louisivi J. Oliva said the union expects the RTWPB to rule that there are no supervening conditions to justify a wage hike within a year since the last wage order was been issued. New wage petitions can only be filed after a year since the last petition, except when supervening conditions warrant the filing of a petition sooner.

She said workers are still feeling the weight of high commodity prices beyond food since the implementation of the first package of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law last year.

“Sa TRAIN Law, walang pakinabang ang minimum wage earner dahil dati na siyang tax exempt (TRAIN did not make a difference for minimum wage earners, who were already tax-exempt under the old rules). Ang nangyari lang is tumaas lang ang presyo…dahil sa dagdag na excise tax sa fuel, (But prices also rose because of the excise tax on fuel),” she said in a briefing on Monday.

Labor Undersecretary Ciriaco A. Lagunzad III told reporters in a briefing that one of the criteria for minimum wage setting is also the Pinggang Pinoy model of the FNRI. He said, “If you look at the criteria…one of them includes a living wage. One valuable indicator is the study of the FNRI to see if wages are enough to buy food that ensure the minimum calorie requirement.”

However, he added: “The minimum wage is not designed to look only at the food requirement of the worker.”

Last week, labor groups Kilos Na Manggagawa (KnM), Metal Workers’ Alliance of the Philippines (MWAP), and BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN) filed before the NCR RTWPB a P213 wage hike petition which would bring the NCR minimum daily wage to P750.

Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III backed “in principle” the TUCP wage hike but added that the matter may need to be addressed after the May 13 elections.

“I can understand the timing because of May 1st but it’s also election period. Therefore, it would be wise to address it after the elections,” Mr. Sotto told reporters over the phone Monday.

“In principle, I am supportive.”

Senator Panfilo M. Lacson, meanwhile, cited the need to study the petition carefully and give the wage boards leeway to decide.

“A thorough study must be made in this regard. Wage hikes are always associated with inflation as a consequence of higher prices of goods, especially in the manufacturing sector, not to mention possible loss of jobs since businesses may not be able to cope,” Mr. Lacson said in a separate phone message.

“The regional wage boards should be given enough flexibility since they should be in a better position to decide on the matter. Conditions obtaining in different areas are not the same.” — Gillian M. Cortez, Charmaine A. Tadalan

Labor group seeks P710 pay hike

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s largest labor organization is seeking a P710 across-the-board daily wage increase for workers in the private sector, saying the current daily minimum pay does not afford them and their families to live in dignity.

Just two days before Labor Day when Malacañang traditionally announces benefits for workers, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) will file on Monday a petition for the pay increase with the regional wage board in Metro Manila.

In a statement, TUCP said ordinary workers in the metropolis should be receiving a minimum of P1,247 salary in order for them and their families to live decent lives.

“The current P537 wage for minimum wage earners in Metro Manila is highly insufficient in light of rising costs of food and services caused by taxes and inadequate government services and social protection assistance to poor Filipinos,” it said.

The group’s spokesperson, Alan Tanjusay, noted that the government considered a family of five “out of poverty” if it was earning a total income of P10,481 a month.

Other factors

But Tanjusay said TUCP would urge the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board to factor in recent developments, such as increases in prices of food and other basic goods in setting “realistic wages.”

In its petition, TUCP said P25—the last wage increase for workers in Metro Manila that took effect in November last year—was no longer sufficient.

“The P25 increase has long been dissipated by the high costs of basic goods and services, even before it could be felt by minimum wage earners, due to a host of factors, particularly the effect of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion [Act] since Jan. 1, 2018,” the labor group said.

Based on government figures, TUCP said, the real value of the current daily minimum wage of P537 in Metro Manila is P457.41.

“The existing minimum wage of P537 in the [metropolis] sorely meets basic human needs for food, water, clothing, education, transport, health, housing, toiletries and electricity,” TUCP said.

It added that the amount could buy workers and their families only nutritionally deficient survival meals.

Other basic needs

“That not discounting other basic needs, the race to cope with increasing cost of living but reiterating the need to give meaning and substance to the country’s policy of inclusive development and shared prosperity, TUCP is simply considering government-prescribed daily nutritional needs of a family of five in its petition for wage increase,” the group said.

A token wage adjustment will just demean and further insult workers, according to TUCP.

“The worker is a critical partner in building the wealth of our nation. The country enjoyed a 6.7 percent GDP (gross domestic product) growth rate in 2017 and 6.2 percent in 2018.

“[Metro Manila] has been the consistent biggest contributor to the GDP, breaching 38 percent beginning 2016. Workers deserve better. They deserve justice now,” the group said. —Tina G. Santos

Fix wages nationwide, labor groups tell Duterte

As the P25 minimum wage increase for Metro Manila workers took effect on Thursday, labor group Federation of Free Workers (FFW) and affiliates belonging to a coalition called Nagkaisa urged President Duterte to form a presidential commission that would study the creation of a national wage fixing mechanism.

In a statement, FFW said the P25 wage increase, approved by the Regional Tripartite Wage and Productivity Board, was “latest proof of how wages fixed under the mechanism deepens inequality rather than eradicate chronic poverty.”

Failure

It said the group and other Nagkaisa affiliates believed “the meager increase simply fits into the 1989 template” created by Republic Act No. 6727, which bases wage increases on employers’ capacity to pay rather than on workers’ standard of living.

FFW said during the presidential election campaign, Duterte recognized that setting wages by regions was a failure.

“He himself announced the need to overhaul the system,” said Sonny Matula, FFW president.

“But until today, no executive action has been done so far to walk his pledge,” Matula added.

Another labor group, Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP), said workers were unable to feel the impact of the P25 wage increase because of inflation.

Purchasing power

Alan Tanjusay, ALU-TUCP spokesperson, said the purchasing power of P25 nowadays was just P17.50.

“It has no impact,” Tanjusay said.

The government, he added, should step in and fill the gap by giving workers a monthly food voucher worth at least P500.

Tanjusay said Duterte had “neither said yes nor no to our proposal.”

“So we remain hopeful,” he added. - By: Tina G. Santos - Reporter / @santostinaINQ

New Metro Manila minimum wage set at P500 to P537

Wage Order No. 22 will take effect 15 days after publication in a newspaper, but labor groups say the increase won't help workers struggling with rising inflation

SEEKING WORK. Hundreds troop to the Quezon City Hall for a job fair on May 1, 2018. File photo by Darren Langit/Rappler 

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Monday, November 5, confirmed the P25 across-the-board wage hike for minimum wage earners in Metro Manila.

New minimum wage rates for agricultural workers, firms in the manufacturing sector with at most 10 workers, and firms in the retail as well as service sectors with at most 15 workers will earn at least P500 daily, from the previous P475.

Non-agricultural workers, meanwhile, will soon have a daily minimum wage of P537 from P512.

Under Wage Order No. 22, the P10 cost of living allowance (COLA) will also become part of the basic pay. Previously, the minimum basic pay ranged from P465 to P502, with an additional P10 COLA.

National Wages and Productivity Commission Executive Director Criselda Sy explained that the integration of COLA in the basic pay means bigger computations for overtime pay and 13th month pay.

The new wage order will be effective 15 days from publication in a newspaper. Sy said a copy of the order will be sent to their office on Monday afternoon.

The order was signed by DOLE, the Department of Trade and Industry, National Economic and Development Authority, and an employers' group representative. Labor group representatives signed the order, but with reservations.

The wage order can still be appealed within 10 days upon publication. But Sy said there were no appeals that had been successfully granted in the past.

Higher inflation?

Asked whether the regional board could have approved a higher increase, Sy explained that doing so might lead to "secondary inflationary effects."

"It could be a potential source of secondary inflationary effects. Inflation is at 6.7% and it could be higher if we implement a higher wage hike," she said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said on Monday that the P25 wage hike had already been taken into consideration in its latest inflation forecasts – 5.2% for 2018, 4.3% for 2019, and 3.2% for 2020.

Sy also warned that the minimum wage policy "may be overburdened" with a higher rate, and may also lead to layoffs, if employers are unable to accommodate the additional cost.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III noted that the decision to implement the P25 wage hike was reached to "balance" the interests of both workers and employers. The Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) had called for a P100 hike, down from the initial P334, during discussions.

"In deciding [the] minimum wage adjustment, the board needs to balance the needs of workers and their families, with the capacity of enterprises to pay the additional labor cost, without impairing businesses, especially [their] capacity to continuously generate jobs," Bello said.

Based on Republic Act No. 6727 or the Wage Rationalization Act, each region in the Philippines has a unique minimum wage set by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards. The factors taken into consideration include the poverty threshold, employment rate, and cost of living specific to the region.

'Overworked, underpaid workers'

Labor groups slammed the "measly" P25 increase, saying it is "not a relief" for workers.

ALU-TUCP said inflation would continue to "prolong" the plight of workers, and warned of further strikes.

"By not giving a substantial wage increase, we are looking at disgruntled, dissatisfied workers, with or without unions, demanding higher wages, directly confronting employers and business owners, creating tension within the enterprise level thereby disturbing and breaking the fragile industrial peace," ALU-TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said.

Meanwhile, Partido Manggagawa said the hike is "30% short" of making up for the P35.84 "erosion" in wages, according to its own estimate.

"P25 is just alms, not relief to overworked yet underpaid Filipino workers. P25 cannot compensate for the [almost] 7% runaway inflation in Metro Manila and real wage stagnation, despite 50% productivity growth from 2001 to 2016," Partido Manggagawa president Rene Magtubo said. – Aika Rey Rappler.com

Metro workers seek P100 wage increase

The Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) on Friday appealed for President Rodrigo Duterte’s intervention as it pushed its demand for a P100-daily wage increase for workers in the National Capital Region (NCR).

Men work in a construction site in Barangay Pag-asa in Quezon City. PHOTO BY RUY MARTINEZ

The group sought the President’s help a day after the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region (RTWPB-NCR) approved a P25- increase for minimum wage workers in the NCR.

The group said a P100 wage hike would raise the P512 daily minimum wage to P612, an amount that would enable workers and their families to cope with rising prices.

“In behalf of all poorly paid 4 million Metro Manila minimum wage workers and their families in Metro Manila who are suffering due to expensive cost of living brought by the astonishing inflation in the past 10 months, we are appealing to President Duterte’s kind-hearted ‘malasakit’ to please spare a portion of your presidential powers in favor of the working class by raising the recent ‘unofficial’ and measly P25 daily wage increase to at least P100 a day,” ALU-TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay said.

“Mr. President, workers and their families have been longing to taste the fruits of your ‘Tunay na Pagbabago’ (genuine change) for all Filipinos. Now is the time to make businesses’ profits and the country’s economic wealth to truly trickle down to troubled workers who also help built the country and businesses to thrive but were left behind by flawed policies and greedy businessmen,” he added.

The ALU-TUCP originally sought a P334 a day wage increase but settled for P100. The Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) made a counter offer of P25.

The labor representatives in the seven-man tripartite wage board were outvoted by employers and government representatives in the last minute bargaining. - By WILLIAM DEPASUPIL, TMT

Duterte urged to stand up for workers

Labor groups on Friday appealed to President Duterte to stand up for workers in the wake of reports that a measly P25 daily salary increase has been approved for minimum wage earners in Metro Manila.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (REY BANIQUET/PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)

Instead of the paltry adjustment, the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) urged President Duterte to use his presidential powers by raising daily wage hike to at least P100 a day.

Labor groups had earlier called for a P335 daily minimum wage increase for private workers in Metro Manila to help them cope with rising inflation rate. Employers, however, reportedly opposed the huge wage adjustment proposal, warning that it might hit businesses and scare away investors.

“In behalf of all poorly paid four million Metro Manila minimum wage workers and their families in Metro Manila who are suffering due to expensive cost of living brought about by the astonishing inflation in the past 10 months, we are appealing to President Duterte’s kind-hearted ‘malasakit’ to please spare a portion of your presidential powers in favor of the working class by raising the ‘unofficial’ and measly P25 daily wage increase to at least P100 a day,” ALU-TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said in a statement.

Should the President authorize a P100 daily wage increase, the current daily minimum wage of P512 will increase to P612 a day, Tanjusay said. This would enable workers and their families to at least temporarily tide things over and get by through the hardship brought about by the rising inflation.

“Mr. President, workers and their families have been longing to taste the fruits of your ‘TunaynaPagbabago’ (genuine change) for all Filipinos. Now is the time to make businesses’s profits and the country’s economic wealth truly trickle down to troubled workers who also help build the country’s economy and businesses to thrive but are left behind by flawed policies and greedy businessmen,” he said.

“Mr. President, you have demonstrated in several instances your proven political will as shown in many instances whereby you intervened and took matters into your hands and make policies right and institutions work for the interest of the Filipino people. This time, at the most period of your presidency, we urge you to stand up for workers and their families and don’t let us down at a time when we needed you the most,” Tanjusay added.

The decision of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region on the salary increase for minimum wage earners in Metro Manila will be known next week.
The Department of Labor and Employment said the decision of the wage board will be announced in a press briefing Monday, November 5.

On Thursday, Malacañang assured that the interests of the labor sector and employers would be taken into consideration in any decision on the petition seeking to increase minimum wage hike in Metro Manila.

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo gave the assurance while dismissing as unofficial the reported P25 wage hike.

“As of October 31, the reported P25 wage hike for minimum wage workers has yet to be approved by the National Wage and Productivity Commission (NWPC). Therefore, the figure being disseminated is not official,” Panelo said.

“The Palace assures everyone that the interests and well-being of both sides – management and labor – as well as the overall impact to our domestic economy, would be considered by the government in attending to this matter,” Panelo added.

Reports had earlier circulated that the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region has approved the P25 minimum wage hike for private workers in Metro Manila.

Labor groups slammed the small amount reportedly approved by the wage board. By Leslie Ann Aquino (With a report from Genalyn D. Kabiling)

Big labor group demands P100 pay hike, pleads for Duterte’s push

The Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines on Friday appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte to intervene and raise the suggested 25-peso increase in the minimum wage to P100.

“In behalf of all the poorly paid four million minimum-wage workers and their families in Metro Manila who are suffering due to the high inflation rate, we are appealing to President Duterte to raise the minimum wage to at least P100 a day,” ALU-TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay said in a statement.

READ: P25-wage hike a pittance—Labor

The labor group said the workers and their families had been longing to taste the fruit of genuine change.

“Now is the time to make the businesses’ profits and the country’s economic wealth to truly trickle down to the troubled workers,” Tanjusay said.

READ: Solomonic deal on wage hike pushed

The ALU-TUCP says P100 a day will change the current daily minimum wage of P512 to P612 a day―an amount that would enable workers and their families to get by.

“We urge you Mr. President, not to totally believe what all your economic managers are saying. Your economic managers are just lip-servicing you and are not telling you the whole truth,” Tanjusay said.

“What they are telling you are half-truths to artificially make you feel good, but in reality, the masses are drifting in poverty made worse by the implementation of TRAIN.”

The ALU-TUCP is blaming the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines for allegedly announcing prematurely the decision of the wage boards to keep wages at the barest minimum. - by Vito Barcelo

DoLE backtracks on P25 wage hike

The P25 wage increase announced by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region (RTWPB-NCR) for private sector workers in Metro Manila is not yet official pending review by the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC).

Labor Secretary Silvestre Belo 3rd. PHOTO BY RUSSELL PALMA

On Thursday, Malacañang spokesman Salvador Panelo and Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello 3rd issued separate clarifications that the NCR wage board’s announcement was not yet executory because the result of the final tripartite consultation held on Tuesday that pegged the wage adjustment at P25 per day would still be forwarded to the NWPC and to the Office of the President for their final say.

The Manila Times has learned that during Tuesday’s meeting, there was a deadlock between the P25 proposal of employers and the P100 proposal of the labor sector, which prompted the seven-man RTWPB to break it through voting.

“After the voting, the P25 wage increase proposal of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) prevailed. The voting was 5 in favor and 2 against. The labor group was outvoted,” Alan Tanjusay, spokesman of the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP), said.

The RTWPB is composed of two representatives from the labor sector, two from employers and three from the government.

“We are now confused about what’s really happening. Although we already knew that the wage board has already a final decision, what ECOP did was they leaked the decision even as they know fully well that it has yet to go up to the NWPC, then to the Office of the President and then back to Secretary Bello for announcement,” Tanjusay said.

He expressed belief that the ECOP deliberately leaked the P25 wage increase approved by the wage board so that the NWPC would be forced to carry it out.

With the P25 wage increase already reported by media, organized labor reacted strongly, warning that it would create more trouble in work places because workers would continue to demand higher wages because of extraordinary increases in the prices of basic services and cost of services.

“We are warning our social partners, government and employers, that hunger and poverty will only escalate and this will cause more instability from the labor front. We are now telling you that labor groups will file for another wage increase as inflation will continue to rise,” ALU-TUCP vice president Louie Corral said.

Corral added that supervening events will continue to push down workers and the call for wage increase will escalate because the P25 increase is not a “realistic intervention.”

He warned that strikes would disturb the prevailing industrial peace.

Tanjusay said they would continue to fight for a just and substantial wage increase.

“We will invoke that supervening condition exists to justify another round of wage increases. We are not in a normal situation and we are already preparing our petition,” he added.

Tanjusay said the labor sector is pinning their hope on President Rodrigo Duterte.

“Traditionally and historically, we know that the board wage order is dominated by government and employers sector and both camps always connive to outvote the labor representatives and members of the board toward a meager and measly wage increase to keep businesses’ interest which is to keep wages to the barest minimum regardless of workers’ worsening condition just to keep margin of profit,” he added.

Militant labor group Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP) said P25 is a “pittance” and not enough to recover the value lost due to inflation. - By WILLIAM DEPASUPIL, TMT

Labor group hits ECOP for dictating ‘measly’ P20 wage increase

Rappler photo

The labor group Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines slammed the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines for dictating a measly P20 wage increase for minimum workers in the National Capital Region during the public hearing on wage increase.

ALU-TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said the P20 wage increase is being floated by the ECOP as the amount they want the Metro Manila wage board to grant as acceptable to them.

The labor group has filed a P334 wage increase in Metro Manila to be hiked by P334 to reach P846 from the current P512.

The ALU-TUCP cited inflation as the main reason for the proposed hike which rose to 6.2 percent.

Tanjusay said that prices of food and costs of services continue to rise since June, saying there is a need for workers and their families to cope with the current 6.2-percent inflation rate.

Last September, the Department of Labor and Employment announced a P20 hike in the minimum wage in Metro Manila, but the labor group said that proposed hike was an insult to the 4 million wage earners in Metro Manila.

“Considering the searing extraordinary hardship caused by incredibly growing inflation among lowly-waged minimum-waged workers and their families, the ECOP statement is inciting upheaval among workers mostly in slum areas who helped build business and country economy grow but are being treated unjustly,” Tanjusay said.

He said that poor workers are already suffering from government neglect, as the labor group urged business and employers to stop from making highly provocative statements like that.

“We saw and felt once again, how greedy and irresponsible employers and business groups are by continuing to absolutely oppose any wage hike proposal and by defending their profit margin at all costs without due regard to the suffering of their employees particularly at these economically hard times for workers and their families,” the labor group said.

“We can only hope for the best. But with these kinds of poor value and low character shown today by business and employers, let us be ready for the worse,”Tanjusay added. - by Vito Barcelo

Labor union pushes P320 wage increase

Current daily minimum wage - NWPC

The Alliance of Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines on Thursday urged the National Capital Region-Regional Wages and Productivity Board to grant its P320 wage increase petition amid rising prices of goods and the approval of a P1 fare hike for public utility vehicles.

“With the fare increase, there is now a very urgent need for the Metro Manila wage board to grant a substantial wage increase for workers in the NCR for them to survive in the light of the extraordinary increases in prices of basic goods and costs of services in the past 10 months, including this P1 jeepeny fare increase,” ALU-TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay told the Manila Standard.

He said that “a regional across-the-board wage increase of P320 is now needed in NCR because the existing P512 daily minimum wage is not enough for a household with at least five members to survive and live “a decent life.”

By law, the wage can only be raised after a year from the last increase, unless there is a supervening event that will merit an adjustment, the labor group said.

The increase in jeepney and bus fares and the continuing rise in the price of commodities would substantiate the supervening event to merit a wage hike.

Tanjusay said that the last minimum wage increase in Metro Manila took effect on Oct. 5, 2017. The current minimum wage is ₱512.

He said the TUCP would not oppose the P1 fare increase for PUJ granted by the LTFRB, because the increase will improve the take-home pay of the jeepney drivers and help their families cope with the current rate of inflation.

The NCR wage board will meet on Oct. 22 to determine how much of a wage hike to grant Metro Manila workers. -by Vito Barcelo

‘Price swings erode workers’ buying power’

The Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said Tuesday high inflation was pushing down the workers’ buying power as it criticized the government and employers for their alleged lack of social responsibility.

The labor group said the rising prices of goods and the surging cost of services were continuing to pull down the capacity of workers to buy goods and to pay for services.

In other developments:

• The poorest 60 million Filipinos suffered income loss due to inflation in the first six months of 2018, the research group IBON Foundation said on Tuesday.

It estimated loss at between P993 and P2,715 and blamed it on high inflation.

The inflation rate increased from 3.4 percent in January 2018 to 5.2 percent in June of the same year.

• Finance Secretary Carlos Dominquez on Tuesday assured senators that his department’s prudent debt management and fiscal discipline had prepared it for the changing global trends.

Speaking during the Development Budget Coordination Committee Senate briefing, Dominguez said they had exceeded growth expectations while the revenues were above target.

“Higher government spending means more services delivered to our people. We have put more money in people’s pockets,” he said.

ALU-TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay said before the government’s Tax Acceleration and Inclusion or TRAIN Law, the total average daily minimum wage of minimum wage earners for contractualized and entry-level employees nationwide for the month of October 2017 was P327 a day and its equivalent purchasing power was P212.89 a day.

In April 2018 and in light of the wage increases from the regional wage boards, the total average daily minimum wage of workers for the same set of workers rose to P330.47, but due to rising inflation, their buying power fell to P208.38 a day.

However, despite another round of wage increases in some regions, the workers’ total average nationwide pay in June 2018 rose to P335 a day, but their purchasing power remained at P208.83 a day.

“The cost of living was rising and workers and their families were having difficulty coping with the prices of food, particularly the price of rice, electricity and tuition, transportation and house rent, but we don’t know when will the government step in and extend social safety net programs to the poor workers,” Tanjusay said.

The National Economic and Development Authority set the standard amount at P1,400 a day―the amount needed by a family of five to live comfortably.

The labor group has petitioned the regional wage boards with a P320 across-the-board wage increase, but only nine have made wage adjustments. Eight other regional wage boards have yet to adjust the wage rates in their regions. - Vito Barcelo With Rio N. Araja and Macon Ramos-Araneta

Labor groups slam, employers back trade chief’s ‘minimal’ wage hike

File photo / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

Labor groups on Thursday denounced Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez for saying that any wage increase should be “minimal” to avoid increasing production costs and consumer prices.

Alan Tanjusay, spokesperson for the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP), said workers needed a substantial across-the-board wage increase to cope with surging prices.

“The country’s wage rates are so small and inadequate that it needs a significant increase in the light of extraordinary inflation caused by the inutile leadership of Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez to arrest profiteers and control prices of commodities combined with the inflation as a result of excise tax on fuel by the (tax reform) law, increase in the prices of oil in the world market and the felt depreciation of the value of peso against the US dollar,” Tanjusay said in a statement.

The highest monthly gross pay of P12,300, which minimum wage workers in Metro Manila receive, is “way below” the P42,000 that the National Economic and Development Authority had stated was needed by a typical Filipino family to live decently, Tanjusay added.

‘Dangerous’

Lopez told a briefing in Malacañang on Wednesday that he was not in favor of a nationwide wage increase because this would be “dangerous.”

“If we increase wages, this will increase costs and this might trigger rise in prices of goods, and it will not only be the wage earners but the whole population that will be affected. So those who did not benefit from the wage hike will also get affected,” he said.

“So if you ask me, there could be minimal adjustment. But that should not be more than what is necessary—because you will really create a strong pressure on inflation,” he added.

Tanjusay said that if employers refused to raise wages, the workers and their families would become more impoverished and vulnerable to unlawful and immoral means to survive.

“Hunger encourages more social upheaval, chaos and anarchy,” he said.

Not proworker

Tanjusay said any major wage increase would be spent “to purchase basic commodities, pay loans, pay for siblings’ matriculation, and remitted to parents in rural provinces benefiting businesses and job opportunities in the process.”

Julius Cainglet of the Federation of Free Workers (FFW) said Lopez was clearly not standing for workers and their families.

“His heart only beats for employers,” Cainglet said.

The administration should make amends for failing to end contractualization and implementing the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act by granting a significant wage hike, he said.

Kilusang Mayo Uno’s Elmer Labog said Lopez was lying because prices had been increasing even without any wage hikes.

“On the contrary,” Labog said, “increasing the workers’ purchasing capacity would make the economy more vibrant as they could buy more goods and services. DTI and the Duterte government should stop treating the Filipino workers like slaves.”

Lopez only wants more belt tightening for workers while the price of basic commodities rose steadily, said Renato Magtubo of Partido Manggagawa.

“It says much about how insensitive this administration is when it comes to increasing workers’ pay in order to provide them relief amid rising cost of living,” Magtubo said.

Regional wage boards

Asked to clarify what he meant by a “minimal” wage increase, Lopez said the regional boards should be left to decide what “reasonable position” to take.

“They [the regional boards] consider and decide on what’s the balance between the plight and needs of the workers and those of the business to make the operations still viable and without affecting jobs generation,” he told the Inquirer.

Under the Wage Rationalization Act, regional boards determine and fix minimum wage rates applicable in their respective regions. Each board is composed of representatives from the government, labor sector and management.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), the largest business group in the country, said it would only back a minimal wage increase.

PCCI chair George Barcelon declined to give a range of wage rates that businessmen would be comfortable with, noting that it was difficult to set it “arbitrarily.”

Barcelon said his group was “OK” with a small wage hike, as long as its effects on the economy had been considered.

“The other thing that we should also bear in mind is our competitiveness,” he told the Inquirer. “We strive to be competitive in many ways, not only in wages. But labor can be a factor [in our competitiveness].”

The American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (AmCham) also deferred to regional boards to make the decision on any wage hikes.

“The regional boards are a good system for bringing together representatives of employers, workers and government. It has been approving increases for some years that reflect inflation yet keep the Philippines competitive with most large [economies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations],” AmCham senior adviser John Forbes told the Inquirer. - By: Stephen C. Canivel, Tina G. Santos - @inquirerdotnet

TUCP petitions for P320 basic pay increase in Metro Manila

One of the country’s largest labor centers on Thursday demanded a P320 across-the-board increase in the daily minimum wage for all private sector workers in Metro Manila.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said the current basic pay of P512 was not enough for a Metro Manila household with at least five members to live decently.

If approved, the petition that the TUCP filed in the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board would bring the minimum wage in the National Capital Region to P832.

This will “help restore the purchasing power of their wages, to cover the further increases in prices of basic goods and services, and to compensate their contribution to the improvement of the regional and national economy,” the group said.

TUCP, which is also a party-list group in the House of Representatives, wants the P320 adjustment in the minimum wage legislated across the board and implemented in all regions. It earlier filed a bill setting the floor pay at between P576 and P832.

Another House bill, filed by lawmakers belonging to the Makabayan bloc, sets a P750 basic wage nationwide to help workers cope with soaring prices.

Survival wage

In a statement, TUCP said its proposal for a daily wage of P832 was still a “survival wage.”

The group cited the rising costs of rice, fuel, sardines, school supplies, education, medical support, transportation, and other goods and services due to the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act, oil price increases and weakening of the peso.

Since Jan. 1, the TRAIN Act has raised the cap for tax-exempt income to P250,000 yearly, but it imposed an excise on products like fuel, sugar-sweetened beverages and tobacco.

Decent living

This will “help restore the purchasing power of their wages, to cover the further increases in prices of basic goods and services, and to compensate their contribution to the improvement of the regional and national economy,” the group said.

TUCP, which is also a party-list group in the House of Representatives, wants the P320 adjustment in the minimum wage legislated across the board and implemented in all regions. It earlier filed a bill setting the floor pay at between P576 and P832.

Another House bill, filed by lawmakers belonging to the Makabayan bloc, sets a P750 basic wage nationwide to help workers cope with soaring prices.

Survival wage

In a statement, TUCP said its proposal for a daily wage of P832 was still a “survival wage.”

The group cited the rising costs of rice, fuel, sardines, school supplies, education, medical support, transportation, and other goods and services due to the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act, oil price increases and weakening of the peso.

Since Jan. 1, the TRAIN Act has raised the cap for tax-exempt income to P250,000 yearly, but it imposed an excise on products like fuel, sugar-sweetened beverages and tobacco.

Decent living

Last month, prices of basic goods and services rose to 4.6 percent nationwide, the highest in more than five years. In Metro Manila, the inflation was 4.9 percent.

Earlier, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia had said that a family of five would need at least P42,000 a month to live decently.

The amount is “roughly equivalent to a P1,400 daily income, which means that P832 is still far from a decent daily wage but we will still appreciate it if the wage board will grant our present petition,” said Manuel Corral, TUCP vice president.

Poverty ‘true enemy’

TUCP also called on President Duterte to lead the fight against poverty.

“We remind the President that the question of wage policy is first and foremost in the minds of people now. Added to this is the question of addressing the problem of inflation and the quest of all for decent jobs,” said the labor center’s president, Raymond Mendoza.

The group reminded Metro Manila’s wage board that “the true enemy of our people is poverty.”

“This is not the time for ‘business as usual.’ A token wage adjustment at this time will just demean and further insult our people … Workers deserve better. They deserve justice now,” the TUCP petition said.

Several days ago, the three regional wage boards in the Visayas approved an increase of P13.50 to P41.50 in the daily minimum wage of workers in the private sector. The amounts are way below the demand of labor groups.

The adjustments will raise the minimum wage to up to P305 in Eastern Visayas, P365 in Western Visayas and P386 in Central Visayas. —TINA G. SANTOS

Labor group files P320 wage hike petition for Metro Manila workers

THE Philippines’ biggest labor group has filed a substantial P320 across-the board wage increase petition for the more than six million minimum wage earners in the National Capital Region (NCR) as inflation, which currently stands at 4.6 percent continues to erode the purchasing power of wages.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) filed the wage increase petition on Thursday before the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB)-NCR following a careful study on the effects of the inflation rate to minimum wage earners in Metro Manila and elsewhere in the country.

“We call on President Duterte to lead from the front in the fight against poverty. We remind the President that the question of wage policy is first and foremost in the minds of people now. Added to this is the question of addressing the problem of inflation and the quest of all for decent jobs,” said TUCP president and partylist Rep. Raymond Mendoza.

The group pointed out that a P320 daily wage increase would bring the minimum wage in NCR to P832 from the existing P512 daily minimum wage to enable a family of five to survive.

NEDA Secretary Ernesto Pernia said that a family of five would need at least P42,000 a month to live decently, which is roughly equivalent to P1,400 daily income.

TUCP vice president Manuel Corral noted that P832 was still “survival wage” as it was way below the P1,400 projection of NEDA, giving the soaring prices of basic commodities and cost of services.

“That is still far from a decent daily wage but we will still appreciate it if the wage board will grant our present petition” he added. WILLIAM B. DEPASUPIL

TUCP seeks P320 minimum wage hike

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) petitioned on Thursday the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-NCR for a P320 across-the-board minimum wage increase in the National Capital Region.

If approved, petition would raise the daily minimum wage in the NCR to P832.The current daily minimum wage in the region, which encompasses Metro Manila and nearby provinces, is P512.

Separate petitions
TUCP assistant general secretary Vicente Camilon Jr. is hopeful that the petition will be approved.

Citing numbers supposedly from the National Economic and Development Authority, Camilon said the equivalent total is still below the P1,400 a day that a family of five needs for daily necessities.

The Trade Union Congress is also filing separate petitions for a P320 across-the-board increase before other regional wage boards, and push for similar legislation. —VDS, GMA News

Labor groups seek wage hike

Rappler file photo

The country’s biggest labor group will file a petition for a substantial across-the-board wage increase for the more than six million minimum wage earners in Metro Manila (National Capital Region) and in other regions.

The Associated Labor Union-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP), through spokesman Alan Tanjuay, disclosed on Sunday the group, along with six other labor organizations, has filed separate across-the-board wage hike, ranging from P120 to P155.80 across-the-board for workers in Central Visayas.

Director Cyril Ticao, chairman of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Cebu, has confirmed that a P155.80 across-the-board daily wage adjustment petition was collectively filed by the Cebu Labor Coalition, Lonbisco Employees Organization (LEO), Metaphil Workers Union, NUWHRAIN-Montebello Chapter, NLM-Katipunan, and the Union Bank Employees Association (UBEA).

The ALU-TUCP, on the other hand, separately filed for a P120 across-the-board daily wage hike.

All petitions, Ticao said, have to be formally presented to the Wage Board in a public hearing, which is a requirement in fixing wages.

Tanjusay said ALU-TUCP would also soon be filing a wage increase petition before the National Capital Region-RTWPB as soon as the group finishes its ongoing study on the inflationary effect of the TRAIN law.

“We are studying well the inflation rate brought about by the natural law of supply and demand and the inflation caused by TRAIN. The amount will be definitely substantial, regardless of whether they will grant it or not,” Tanjusay said.

He said the purchasing power of wages moved downwards by 6 percent from January to February upon the effectivity of the Tax Reform Inclusion and Acceleration (TRAIN) law.

He added that in Metro Manila, which has the highest minimum wage, the buying power of P512 daily minimum pay fell to P357.29, while the real value or purchasing power of the country’s lowest minimum pay of P265 a day in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao is now P152.12 a day.

As of March 1, the total purchasing power of workers for a month fell to P8,575. However, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the published standard amount needed by a family of five to survive within poverty line in 2015 was P9,064.

The last wage increase amounting to P21 per day was granted to minimum wage earners in Metro Manila on October 5, 2017.

Tanjusay said ALU-TUCP could simultaneously file petitions either through the 17 regional wage boards or through an emergency legislation via the House of Representatives.

The last time workers experienced a significant wage hike was in 1989 or 29 years ago when the late President Corazon Aquino gave a P25 daily across-the-board wage increase nationwide.- BY WILLIAM DEPASUPIL, TMT

CVisayas seeks P120 wage hike

ManilaTimes file photo

THE Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) is seeking a P120 daily wage increase for all workers in Central Visayas.

Nora Analyn Diego, ALU-TUCP regional vice president, said they will file the wage hike petition before the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) this Wednesday.

She said the P120 daily wage hike petition is essential for the workers to cope with the increasing cost of living and meet the basic needs of their families.

Meanwhile, Antonio Chiu, president of Cebu Chamber of Commerce, said they have yet to issue a comment on ALU-TUCP petition. - BY RHEA RUTH ROSELL

Metro Manila workers to get P21 daily wage hike

For some workers in Metro Manila, a wage hike does not necessarily mean that they will be able to make ends meet.

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 15) — Minimum wage earners in Metro Manila will receive an additional P21 a day after the regional wage board approved the increase Thursday.

This brings the minimum wage for non-agriculture workers in Metro Manila to P512 from P491 starting the end of September.

Those in the agriculture sector, small retail, service and manufacturing establishments will get P475 from the previous P454.

According to the order, the wage board "has determined the need to increase the prevailing minimum wage rates without impairing the viability of business and industry."

The Associated Labor Unions - Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) said the hike will affect about 6 million minimum wage earners in Metro Manila.

The 21-peso wage hike is still below the petitioned increase by three labor groups.

In June, the Association of Minimum Wage Earners and Advocates - Philippine Trade and General Workers Organization filed a petition for a P175 hike, while the ALU-TUCP sought a P184 increase. The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines asked for P259.

While the wage hike covers all minimum wage earners in the private sector in Metro Manila, it excludes domestic workers, persons in the personal service of another, and workers of duly registered Barangay Micro Business Enterprises.

Wage hike not enough

The ALU-TUCP said the P21 increase is inadequate to meet the needs of minimum wage workers.

"The P21 increase in daily wage remains insufficient for families to cope with rising prices of goods and increasing costs of goods. P21 is only 4.27% of the current P491. So it obviously did not lift workers out of poverty," said ALU-TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay.

He said the group will request President Rodrigo Duterte to provide a P500 monthly cash subsidy to minimum wage workers to purchase rice, groceries, and medicines.

Labor union Kilusang Mayo Uno agrees.

"Instead of heeding our demands, the Duterte government is insulting workers with a measly 21 peso increase that would even be futile amidst the unabated increases in the prices of basic goods and services," it said in a statement. - By Ver Marcelo, CNN Philippines