Certify聽P200 wage bill,聽labor groups ask gov鈥檛
Rep. Fidel Nograles —Contributed photo
MANILA, Philippines — The chair of the House committee on labor and employment and the country’s major labor groups, in separate statements, are making an appeal to President Marcos to certify as urgent the P200 legislated wage-increase bill that is still pending in Congress.
On Saturday, Rizal Rep. Fidel Nograles said Marcos should “take the reins” and not pass on the burden to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) especially with rising hunger and increases in public transport fees.
“I believe we are now at the point where we need executive action,” he said.
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“We are past the need for reviews from the RTWPBs; what the people need is for [Marcos] to certify as urgent the proposed wage hike,” he added.
READ: Makabayan hits Palace: Quick on fare hikes, slow on wage increase
The National Wage Coalition (NWC), meanwhile, is expected to issue its appeal after its meeting on Monday. The NWC is composed of Bukluran ng Manggawang Pilipino, Kilusang Mayo Uno, Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa and Trade Union Congress of the Philippines.
“This call comes amid relentless fare hikes for trains, jeepneys and buses set to take effect this April, driven by soaring oil prices. Meanwhile, self-rated poverty has reached its highest levels in over two decades, and the nation faces a hunger crisis not seen since the pandemic,” the NWC said in a statement on Saturday.
‘Measly, insufficient’
Nograles pointed out the regional wage boards have historically only championed “measly and insufficient” wage hikes that do not address rising living costs.
He added the “fastest and most effective intervention” for this would be for the House’s proposed P200 across-the-board daily wage hike for private sector workers—whose committee report was approved last February—to be passed into law.
Nograles said an urgent certification by the President on the proposed wage hike could help its eventual passage.
“Once session resumes in June there will only be six days remaining to pass the bill. An urgent certification would help us bypass the three-session-day rule between the 2nd and 3rd reading passage of the proposed wage hike,” he said.
“We appeal to the President because the people really, really need a wage hike. The President must have a direct hand in ensuring that Filipino workers are given a lifeline,” he added.
Nograles’ statement follows Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro’s announcement that Mr. Marcos has instructed the regional wage boards to review the workers’ pay.
