Following the Senate’s approval of a proposed P100 legislated wage increase, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) is urging the House of Representatives to pass its own P150 wage hike measure. The TUCP is pushing for the passage of House Bill (HB) 7871, also known as the Wage Recovery Act, which is currently pending in the House Committee on Labor and Employment. In response, the House leadership has directed the panel to hold public hearings as soon as possible.
The TUCP argues that despite recent pay hikes approved by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) across the country’s 17 regions, wages still fall below the poverty threshold set by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and are far from the family living wage estimated by the think tank IBON Foundation. The TUCP criticizes the wage boards’ “outmoded exploitative approach,” claiming that setting low wages to attract investments is no longer effective in today’s changing economic landscape.
It is worth noting that the last legislated wage hike through Republic Act 6727, which established the regional wage boards, was only P25 on top of the then-P64 minimum wage. The highest minimum wage hike approved by the regional wage boards as of 2024 was a mere P50. The TUCP emphasizes that after nearly 35 years without a legislated pay increase, Congress should reverse its “cheap labor” policy.
TUCP Vice President Luis Corral highlights the consequences of inadequate wages, stating, “All regional minimum wages today fall far short of bringing nutritious food to their family’s table. Without badly needed living wages as enshrined in the Constitution, malnutrition and growth stunting will further escalate, leading to sick workers and a drop in labor productivity, while our children’s mental and physical growth continue to be stunted.”
However, big business strongly opposes legislated pay hikes, arguing that it is in the best interest of both labor and employers to leave the determination of wage increases to the regional boards. The Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) maintains that legislating salary increases is not only inflationary but also fails to benefit the majority of the workforce, who belong to the informal sector.
According to ECOP, “The wage increase is only for formal sector workers, which is only 16 percent of the 50 million workers. The remaining 84 percent are informal workers like fisherfolk, tricycle drivers, vendors, and jeepney drivers, who have no employers and regular salaries.”
Jose Luis Yulo of the Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (The Chamber), the country’s oldest business group, also opposes legislated across-the-board salary hikes, deeming them “unfair” to the business sector. Yulo believes that the regional boards are better equipped to set the minimum wage in their respective regions. He emphasizes the importance of making existing laws work and states, “We have regional wage boards; they should do their jobs. Let us not make a law that would supplant the job of the wage boards.”
The push for a wage increase in the Philippines has sparked a heated debate between labor organizations and big business. While labor advocates argue that legislated pay hikes are necessary to address poverty and inequality, business groups contend that such measures could have adverse effects on the economy and fail to benefit the majority of workers. As the discussions continue, it remains to be seen how the House of Representatives will respond to the call for a P150 wage hike and whether a balance can be struck between the interests of labor and the business sector.
Source: The Manila Times
