Wage hearing: Labor, management sectors explain stand on wage hike petitions

Wage increase petitioners from the labor sector cited the impact on workers of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (Train) Law and the introduction of the Public Utility Vehicles modernization program as among the factors to increase workers’ wages.

Metudio Belarmino Jr., the Cebu Labor Coalition (CELAC) spokesperson, said that their wage petition was based on the needs of workers and their families, specifically on the demand of livings wages, wage adjustment vis-à-vis the consumer price index, cost of living in the region against the purchasing capacity of the workers, the unstable oil price hike, the R-VAT, electric cost, transportation hike, the ever yearly rising costs of education and the implementation of the Train law.

Belarmino said that since the past years, prices of basic commodities had soared up to the present, while purchasing power of the workers had been crippled due to inflation.

“Purchasing power of peso has decline to P0.64, which has erode the real wages of workers due to high inflation, making it necessary to adjust the minimum wage to meet the basic needs of workers and their families. In real terms the P366 minimum wage is only P234.24,” he said.

P155.80 wage hike pushed

Celac is pushing for P155.80 wage adjustment across-the-board on top of the existing daily wage of P366 and presented their position paper during Wednesday’s the third leg of the Wage Public Hearing at City Sports Club Cebu, in Cardinal Rosales st., Cebu City conducted by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board in Central Visayas (RTWPB-7).

Another labor group the Associated Labor Union-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) is asking for a P120 wage increase.
Wednesday’s wage hearing was attended by representatives from the labor sector as well as from the management sector.

Belarmino said that as per index of the National Statistics Office (NSO), now Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), a family of six in Central Visayas should have P842 daily income in order to adequately meet their basic needs.

He also said that this year, a total of P39 of gasoline price adjustments were done while diesel have a P40 price adjustment.

The region also has high cost of electric power, while the introduction of the PUV modernization program is also expected to increase the fare.

He also added that due to the implementation of Train law, workers are now facing higher prices of goods and services because of higher taxes.

Meanwhile, Arturo Barrit, representative of ALU-TUCP, also clarified during their presentation, that the group does not intend to bankrupt companies, shut down, or lay-off workers, but they only want that minimum wage earners would get decent wage to afford a decent life.

“The last increase granted by this honorable board, was small as it had been overtaken by the continuing increase in the prices of base goods, commodities, and services due to the recently implemented tax measures, the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN),” Barrit said.

Other sectors

But other sectors were against the wage hike petitions, saying that this would hurt the small businesses more.

Eli Trinidad, representative of MEPZ Chamber of Exporters and Manufacturer (MEPZCEM), described the two wage petitions as defective and had to be dismissed by the wage board.

MEPZCEM suggests focusing more on job generation and advocate productivity improvement through seminars and best practice sharing in order to compensate for the wage increase.

Stanley Go, Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) president, in the group’s position paper opposed the across-the-board wage adjustment.

Go said that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) would be the very entities that would be significantly affected by an untimely wage increase since they would have less capacity to afford across-the-board wage adjustments at this time.

Go said that almost 70 percent of their 400 member companies are SMEs.

“The petitions for wage adjustment should not just solely account inflation rate but should also consider cost of living, production cost, goods and services prices, subsistence standard, and business ability to pay, labor productivity, GDP, and economic and social conditions. The inflation increase alone is insufficient to be considered a reason for a wage increase,” Go said.

But Fred Escalona, Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. Cebu (Philexport Cebu) executive director, said that the group was not opposing the wage hike petition but that they only wanted the adjustment to be fair and done in an equitable manner.

“We fully understand the plight of our workers. Inflation rate in March 2018 was recorded at 4.3 percent. It is expected that the rate will jump to 4.9 percent in April and 5.0 percent in May this year. This will put added pressure on prices of basic commodities and could lead further to the erosion of workers’ purchasing power, which has unfortunately fallen to P8,575 in March 2018, lower than the monthly minimum wage,” Escalona said.

The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) also said that the two wage petitions were counterproductive.

“The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry conveys to DOLE-7 (Department of Labor and Employment in Central Visayas) and RTWPB-7 that the granting of the petition of ALU-TUCP and CBL for P120 and P155.80 across-the-board minimum daily wage increase, respectively is counterproductive at this point in time,” said the CCCI’s position paper, which was signed by CCCI President Antonio Chiu.

“However, any wage increase should take into consideration that some sector particularly MSMEs cannot afford in any increase, while other sectors may be in the position to grant adjustments but should be based on productivity and no more than the average inflation rate,” the CCCI’s position paper said.

Opportunity for stakeholders

During the hearing, Lawyer Alvin Villamor, Dole-7 director, who also sits as the RTWPB-7 chairman, said that the hearing was the opportunity for stakeholders to share their views and comments and their stand on the two wage hike petitions.

“Part of our mandate is to consult and get inputs from you, our stakeholders, on your stand on the petition at hand. Our job was never easy because of the different needs of stakeholders, wherein we have to balance the interest of labor and management and the needs for regional development,” Villamor said.

The wage board will also be inviting other government agencies in their next meeting, in order for the board to identify the implications of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law that was implemented this year.

“One crucial issue the board will consider is the impact of the Train Law; the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) has already oriented the board on the implication of the Train law, as this is one of the major issues raised by both workers and management. Other government agencies such as PSA (Philippine Statistics Authority), DOE (Department of Energy), LTFRB (Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board) and DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) will also be invited in the next meetings, to provide other information needed in the deliberation,” he added.

Fill up vacancy

Meanwhile, the CCCI also encouraged the RTWPB-7 to fill-up one of the wage board’s vacant seat, as there is only one representative from the management sector, due to the passing of Lawyer Hidelito Pascual in March, last year.

RTWPB-7 is composed of seven members, with the director of DOLE-7 who sits as the board’s chair and the regional director of National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA)-7 and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-7 as co-chairs. While two representatives each from the labor and management sector who sit as wage board members.

But Philip Tan, one of the representatives from the management sector, said that the board had already nominated another representative from the management sector.

He said that the appointment of Ted Locson, CCCI vice president for external, as Pascual’s replacement was still waiting the approval of President Rodrigo Duterte.