Central Visayas workers seek P90 hike in wage

CEBU CITY—Labor groups filed another petition in the regional wage board, this time seeking a P90 increase in the daily pay of workers in Central Visayas to enable them to cope with rising prices of basic commodities and high cost of living.

The Associated Labor UnionsTrade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) said in its petition that the continuing increases in the prices of oil and fuel products, utilities and basic goods and services had overtaken the gains of a P22 raise approved by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board in December last year.

“Thus, the level of minimum wage needed to restore the purchasing power of the workers’ wages and to give them a share in the region’s economic development should be P90,” it added.

Workers in Metro Cebu currently receive a P327 minimum wage per day. Those in Metro Manila earn P466.

On Sept. 27, the Living Wage Coalition-Cebu, which is composed of 22 labor groups led by the Alliance of Progressive Labor, filed a petition asking for a P132 wage adjustment.

The board has yet to decide if it would accept the two petitions since the last wage adjustment was made on Dec. 7, 2012. Under the Wage Rationalization Act, it will accept new petitions for wage increase one year after the issuance of the last wage order, unless “a supervening condition” exists.

Ernesto Carreon of the ALU-TUCP, one of the two labor representatives in the board, said that before deciding on whether or not to accept the petitions, the body would hear first the report from the National Economic and Development Authority in Central Visayas about the economic indicators in the region on Oct. 30.

Carreon said he expected the management representatives in the board to push for nonacceptance of the petitions.

He said he would defend the position of the labor groups so the board could proceed with the public hearing and the actual deliberations.

The wage increase was needed to narrow the gap between the minimum wages in Central Visayas and Metro Manila, Carreon said.

“I’m hoping that the new wage order will be issued before Christmas,” he said.