ECOP, PCCI: Defer wage increase until next year

Claiming that any wage increase would trigger an exodus of foreign investors, the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) urged the country’s 16 regional tripartite wage and productivity boards (RTWPBs) yesterday to defer any wage increase until next year.

ECOP president Donald Dee said wage adjustments during these "trying times" would force foreign investors to leave the country and lead to mass retrenchment of workers.

"A wage increase will cripple the economy and make it the most non-competitive in the region. It will also send wrong signals to investors and cause capital flight," Dee added.

At least five of the 16 RTWPBs, including the one in Metro Manila, are now deliberating on wage petitions filed by the Labor Solidarity Movement (LSM) and its affiliate unions.

LSM, the country’s biggest labor federation, is seeing a P77 increase in the daily minimum wage while demanding adjustments ranging from P69 to P93 for workers in other regions.

The Metro Manila wage board, however, is reportedly set to announce anytime this week a P30 wage hike for workers in the region.

Meanwhile, the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) challenged Congress to hasten the deliberation and approval of House Bill 2605, a measure seeking to grant a P125 across-the-board wage increase.

"The continuous delay for a substantial wage hike is already too cruel for workers to bear. Workers are in dire need of pay hikes to continue providing for their families," said KMU spokesman Sammy Malunes.

Malunes also lambasted the ECOP for its "usual" position against any wage hike and its constant threat of massive retrenchments and company closures.

"All the arguments raised by business groups, particularly the ECOP and PCCI, are excuses to cloud their interests for super profits. Local and foreign capitalists are able to extract huge profits out of workers by keeping wages at basement prices," he said. — With Sandy Araneta