By Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Reporter
AT LEAST three Philippine regions are expected to announce wage increases this month, the Labor department said on Monday.
The Ilocos, Western Visayas and Zamboanga Peninsula regions will release new orders increasing their daily minimum wages, Labor Secretary Bienvenido E. Laguesma told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of a labor inspection event.
Seven of the country’s 16 regional boards have released wage orders this year after President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. ordered them in July to review minimum wages 60 days before the anniversary of their last wage hike.
“Deliberations have already taken place in Regions I (Ilocos), VI (Western Visayas) and IX (Zamboanga Peninsula),” the Labor chief said. “The next regions to follow are the Cordillera Administrative Region, Region 4-B (Mimaropa), Region 5 (Bicol) and Region 8 (Eastern Visayas),” he said in Filipino.
“The final deliberations would be held in Regions X (Northern Mindanao) and XIII (Caraga), in that order,” he added, adding that all regional boards would have issued their wage orders by December.
Last week, the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPB) of Regions II (Cagayan Valley), III (Central Luzon), and XII (Soccsksargen) approved daily minimum wage increases of P27 to P66.
In September, the wage boards of Regions IV-A (Calabarzon) and VII (Central Visayas) also approved daily increases of P21 to P75. The wage board in Region XI (Davao) has also approved a P38 minimum wage hike.
The daily minimum wages in the capital region are now P645 for nonagricultural workers and P608 for workers in agriculture and service/retail establishments employing 15 workers or fewer, according the wage order approved in July.
“[Wage orders from the 16 boards] will be completed within the year because, as we speak, there are already three or four [wage boards] conducting their processes,” Mr. Laguesma said.
The process involves public consultations, hearings and meetings of tripartite board members to finalize the wage orders.
“The effect of the minimum wage adjustment does not end there because we have a thing called wage distortion,” Mr. Laguesma said in Filipino.
He noted that when the minimum wage increases, those whose salaries are close to the new minimum should also receive adjustments to correct the imbalance caused by the wage hike and prevent demoralization.
The Philippines have about 7.3 million minimum wage earners, the Congressional Policy and Budget Research Department of the House of Representatives said in a report this year.
Mr. Laguesma said minimum wages are determined by regional wage boards using three mechanisms.
The first is through the regional wage boards, which review minimum wages. The second mechanism is through collective bargaining agreements and the third is through a so-called bipartite mechanism between the employer and workers without a union.
“That’s why we’re not belittling or insulting our workers when we set or establish the minimum wage. It’s simply the mandate of the Department of Labor and Employment and the RTWPBs,” he added.
Jose Sonny G. Matula, president of the Federation of Free Workers, said they have been calling for a review of the wage-fixing law to fix the disparity between wages and inflation, and discrimination against minimum wage workers in rural areas.
“While the RTWPBs have been given the authority to determine minimum wages under Republic Act 6727, Congress did not surrender or relinquish its power to legislate wage increases but merely delegated this responsibility to the RTWPBs,” he told BusinessWorld in a Viber message.
“This is why we are also advocating for a legislative wage increase to ensure that workers’ wages are aligned with the rising cost of living and do not further create gaps and discriminate [against] workers in the provinces,” he added.
Philippine inflation slowed to 1.9% in September from 3.3% in August and 6.1% a year ago, mainly due to declining food and transport costs, the local statistics agency said on Friday.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile prices of food and fuel, eased to 2.4% from 5.9% a year ago. Core inflation averaged 3.1% for January to September.
Labor groups have sought legislated wage hikes amid spiraling prices, but bills remain pending in both Houses of Congress.
In February, the Senate approved on third and final reading a P100 across-the-board minimum wage increase for workers in the private sector. The House of Representatives has yet to pass a counterpart measure.