P100 daily wage hike bill approved on final reading

The Senate approved Senate Bill No. 2534, which calls for a P100 increase in the daily minimum wage of workers in the private sector, on the third and final reading on Monday, February 19, 2024. (INQUIRER.NET FILE PHOTO)

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate’s approval on its third and final reading brings the landmark bill, which proposes a P100 increase in the daily minimum wage for private sector workers, one step closer to becoming law.

Senate Bill No. 2534 under Committee Report No. 190 received 20 affirmative votes during the chamber’s plenary session on Monday. The proposed law did not obtain any negative votes or abstentions as Sens. Imee Marcos, Lito Lapid, Cynthia Villar, and Mark Villar were not in the session hall during voting and were not able to cast their vote.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, co-sponsor of the bill, earlier noted that if the measure gets signed into law, it could be “the first time since 1989” that a legislated pay hike would be implemented nationwide.

Zubiri likewise emphasized the pressing need to increase the minimum wage of workers, particularly those in Visayas and Mindanao who are currently earning P360 a day.

“How can you live with P360 a day? It’s impossible. Once this bill is passed and becomes a law, this will provide a great relief to our poor and hardworking employees,” he earlier noted.

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada, who sponsored the bill on the Senate floor, said the measure guarantees an increase in the daily pay of around 4.2 million minimum wage earners.

Under the bill, all employees in the private sector, whether agricultural or non-agricultural, are entitled to a P100-daily minimum wage increase.

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