As Labor Day approaches, the National Wage Coalition, composed of numerous labor unions and groups, called on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to certify as urgent the P200 across-the-board wage hike bill and guarantee its prompt enactment into law in a press conference held April 7.
The wage hike, which already passed the second reading of the House of Representatives in February, currently sits in limbo as the House’s legislative session awaits resumption on June 2.
The coalition also worries that once Congress resumes, the hike will be pitted against numerous bills, derailing its passage. They are calling on Marcos to certify the bill as urgent, so it can move to its third reading and finally reach the bicameral committee, where both chambers will decide the fate of the wage hike.
Should it be enacted, it will be the first legislated wage hike in 35 years, with regional wage hikes failing to keep up with the rise in prices of goods. In fact, the real value of wages have actually been decreasing despite the rise in productivity, said economic research group IBON Foundation.
That’s why for labor groups, every day of delay deepens the burden on the country’s ordinary workers, as poverty rates continue to leave more families hungry and children out of school.
In a March survey conducted by Social Weather Stations and Stratbase, 27.2% of Filipino families faced involuntary hunger due to having nothing to eat. Senatorial candidate Luke Espiritu of Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino emphasized how the regional wage boards failed to mitigate the hunger crisis, as wages remain far from the P1,225 national average living wage for a family of five, as computed by IBON.
The wage board was also put in the hot seat during the press conference, asthe coalition condemned the president’s directive to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board to conduct a review on the regional minimum wage rates. For the coalition, what’s left to review?
Luis Corral, vice president of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, shared how the House of Representatives has been studying this wage increase for three years already.
“Hanggang ngayon walang datos na maiharap ang employers groups. Sinasabi ho namin diyan sa alphabet soup ng mga employers groups … nasaan ang inyong datos?” asked Corral.
The coalition also criticized the government and the business sector’s usual retort to wage hike proposals. They called claims linking higher wages to inflation and job losses mere scaremongering tactics.
The facade that the hike cannot be handled by micro, small, and medium enterprises and would lead to mass layoffs was also refuted by the coalition. Employers are in a position to afford higher wages, with employee compensation making up only 11% of total business expenses nationwide, IBON said, citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority.
“Simple lang ang logic ng wage increase, sa tubo kukunin ang dagdag, at di sa presyo ng produkto. So yung argument na yan, sinasabi lang para takutin ang publiko at umiwas sa dagdag na sahod,” Jerome Adonis, secretary general of Kilusang Mayo Uno and Makabayan senatorial candidate, said.
To this day, Marcos has yet to meet with labor leaders, despite repeated requests since 2022. Still, they stand firm: If Marcos refuses to heed their calls, they will flood the streets this May 1 to demand what is theirs. ●
