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MANILA, Philippines 鈥� If President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. can raise the daily subsistence allowance for military personnel by P200, he can also sign into law a bill pending in the House of Representatives, which will impose a P200 increase in the daily minimum wage for all workers, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said on Monday.
鈥淭he workers of this country cannot wait and suffer any longer. The price of everything is going up. We are only asking for a P200 increase in the daily pay of our workers. This wage hike is already overdue,鈥� the group said.
READ: Marcos increases AFP subsistence allowance to P350
鈥淎pril is shaping up to be a month of train, jeepney, bus, water and power price hikes鈥攜et Congress expects us to wait until June, when only six session days remain, to pass this badly needed wage increase 鈥�, it added.
The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board is expected to decide by next month on a petition seeking a minimum fare of P15 to P17 for passenger jeepneys.
On April 2, the Light Rail Transit Line 1 is hiking its fare rates by P5 to P10 while Manila Water Co. Inc. will implement a rate increase of P0.04 per cubic meter also effective next month. Another water concessionaire, Maynilad Water Services Inc., opted to defer a P0.09 increase in its foreign currency differential adjustment.
Signed on March 14, the President鈥檚 Executive Order No. 84 increases the subsistence allowance for officers and enlisted personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines from P150 to P350 a day. The P200 increase shall be retroactive from the start of the year.
No longer enough
According to the EO, the current subsistence allowance of AFP personnel 鈥渋s no longer adequate to meet the daily sustenance of an active-duty soldier, which is essential for their well-being and performance of their duties.鈥�
On Feb. 3, the House of Representatives approved on second reading House Bill No. 11376, which seeks a P200 increase in the daily minimum wage of all workers in the private sector, regardless of employment status.
Senate Bill No. 2534, which proposed a P100 increase in the minimum wage, was approved on the third and final reading in February 2024.
House Deputy Speaker Raymond Democrito Mendoza, TUCP president, earlier noted that Congress, which is currently adjourned, only has six session days left after it resumes sessions on June 2. 鈥淭oo long a wait and too great a risk; our workers simply cannot afford amid this survival crisis,鈥� he said.