Cebu biz leader warns of business closures, job creation slowdowns after ‘historic’ P31 increase in minimum wage rate

Labor groups are pushing for a P140 wage increase for Central Visayas laborers like these road construction workers. (CDN FILE PHOTO)

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Several members of the Cebu business community expressed concerns over the decision of the government to impose a P31-increase in the daily minimum wage in Central Visayas. 

Steven Yu, president of the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI), said micro and small businesses would be at a disadvantage once the new minimum wage rate takes effect.

In a text message sent to CDN Digital, Yu said micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) will be facing a ‘longer and delayed’ journey to full recovery. Or worse, they may suffer downsizing and closures, he added. 

“The business sector fully empathizes with the plight of the labor community due to the soaring costs of living, however, the MSMEs will experience increasing hardships and delayed recovery. We foresee downsizing and business closures in the MSME sector,” Yu explained. 

In addition, the business leader projected that the region may also experience a slowdown in job generation. 

The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board in Central Visayas (RTWPB-7) on May 24, 2022 announced that the body agreed to impose a P31-increase in the daily minimum wage, the highest rate granted in the region so far. 

This means that the new daily minimum wage rate will be P435, from P404. The new minimum wage in the region will be implemented 15 days after its publication.

The RTWPB-7’s decision capped off the months-long public consultations and hearings on the various wage hike petitions filed before the body. 

Among those that sought to increase the minimum wage rate here is the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), which asked the government for a P430-increase. 

However, the business sector in Cebu, including MCCI, did not welcome this possibility.

They pointed out that most of their members are still in a recovery phase following the multiple crises by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukraine-Russia war, and Typhoon Odette. 

MCCI is Cebu’s second-largest business-oriented organization that comprised more than 800 members, most of which belong to the MSME sector.

CDN Digital is still reaching out to the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) for their comments as of this writing.

/bmjo

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