MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Vicente "Tito" Sotto III said he supports doubling the daily minimum wage of workers in Metro Manila to P1,000, echoing the call of labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, to address rising fuel prices.
The minimum wage of private sector workers in the capital stands at P537 per day. The figure was last updated in 2018, according to the National Wage and Productivity Commission.
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"If it were up to me, in these trying times, the minimum wage [in Metro Manila] should be P1,000,” Sotto, who is vying for the vice presidency, said in a recent interview during a campaign sortie in Tuguegarao.
The proposed increase will help workers cope with the price increases caused by the rise in fuel prices, he added.
Local pump prices registered the largest increases this week. Starting yesterday, gasoline rose P7.1 per liter; diesel jumped P13.15 per liter and kerosene increased by P10.5 per liter, based on advisories from several oil firms.
Earlier this week, TUCP — the country's largest group of labor federations — formally asked the Regional Tripartite Wage and Productivity Board to increase the daily minimum wage in the National Capital Region by P470, double the current amount, in a bid to protect workers from inflation worsened by the oil price hikes.
Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson — presidential bet and Sotto's running mate — said regional wage boards are in the best position to decide since they know more about local conditions.
Labor Leader Leody De Guzman, who is running for president under Partido Lakas ng Masa, has called for raising the minimum wage across the country to P750. Citing figures from the National Economic and Development Authorty, he said at a televised debate in February that a family of five will need to earn at least P1,608 a day.
"Pero sa tingin ko, kahit kalahati man lang niyan ay matanggap ng manggagawa natin ay malaking pag-alwa na, makakatulong na kahit wala pa sa P1,600," he said then.
(But, in my view, even just half of that will be a big help to workers)
TUCP is not the first group to call for wage hikes amid oil price surges. Partido Manggagawa earlier urged lawmakers to raise the minimum wage by P100. Meanwhile, Kilusang Mayo Uno pushed to set the minimum wage at P750.
While big firms can afford increasing workers' wages, it may not be the case for small businesses which account for more than 90% in the country, Employers Confederation of the Philippines president Sergio Ortiz-Luis previously told Philstar.com.
Last week, Lacson, the standard-bearer of the Partido Reporma, said it is necessary to review minimum wages to help workers stay afloat due to fuel price increases made worse by tight supply partly triggered by the geopolitical war between Russia and Ukraine.