Wage hike deliberation to start on Thursday

CEBU, Philippines - The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-7 will start deliberating next week whether or not to grant wage hike petitions filed by various labor groups.

RTWPB-7 chairperson Chona Mantilla said the members of the board will hold its first deliberation on February 6 following the final public consultation held in Cebu last week. Another deliberation was scheduled on February 14.

The wage board recently concluded the series of public consultations in Central Visayas on the two separate petitions for wage hike filed by the Living Wage Coalition and the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines.

During the last public hearing held in Cebu last January 30, the business sector represented by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Hardwares Association of Cebu, the Philippine Export-Cebu Chapter, the Mactan Export Processing Zone Chamber of Exporters and Manufacturers, and other independent hotel owners have expressed their opposition to any wage adjustment.

The business sector cited the recent calamities in the Visayas which affected the region as reason in their opposition. However, the labor sector presented data and statistics to justify wage adjustment.

ALU-TUCP asked for a P90 daily wage hike while the Living Wage Coalition asked for a P132 daily wage adjustment across the board.

The National Economic Development Authority-7 and the Department of Trade and Industry-7 likewise presented the economic situation in the region and the comparative prices of basic and prime commodities.

Mantilla, who is also the regional director of the Department of Labor and Employment-7, said that as chairman of the board and who represented the government, she cannot say whether a wage increase should be granted or not.

“It is not only me who shall decide whether there has to be an increase in wages or not because it is the board who shall decide,” she said.

The RTWPB-7 is composed of seven members, three from the government, and two each from both the labor and the management sectors.

“Amo-a paninguha-on nga makahimo ta og bag-ong wage order,” said Jose Tomongha of the Alliance of Progressive Labor who sits as labor sector representative in the wage board. (FREEMAN)