Tuesday, April 22, 2008 Bautista: Is a pay hike needed? By Sam Bautista Tea Leaf Reader
IT WAS good to hear the regional tripartite wages and productivity board (RTWPB) of the Cordillera finally set a meeting this April 22 in order to discuss the possibility of increasing the minimum wage in the region.
Personally, I would rather have the P125 across the board increase called for by militant labor. The reason I lean towards this is because I'm beyond the minimum wage and an across the board increase would really be welcome.
Kidding aside, the RTWPB will meet in order to determine if there are "supervailing" conditions in the region today to merit an increase.
"Supervailing" did not come from us, in fact I asked the intern (Kayceline Buted) twice whether she coined the phrase on her own or it was another government creation. She answered that was exactly what her source said "supervailing", my MS Word just underlined the word three times in bright red, meaning there is definitely no such word in its dictionary.
Anyway, "supervailing" circumstances are those, which put stress on the buying power of the ordinary worker. Distressing situation is probably a better phrase, but it's very economic in nature and is tantamount to the same thing.
So are there "supervailing" conditions to merit a wage increase? Hello? If you still believe there isn't then you must have come from another world.
The price of oil has reached its all time high of US$115 a barrel, the worldwide food crisis is biting into everyone's budget (well except probably the super rich, who are assured of enough food to waste) and to top it all off there isn't any relief in sight.
Because of the high oil prices, jeepney and taxi drivers are shouting for an increase in fares. Jeepney drivers here in the boondocks would want a P1.50 increase, which peg the fare at P9.25 for the first four kilometers.
The taxi drivers, on the other hand, are divided on the flag down rate. Manilans would like it to be P40 to P45. Some drivers I talked with would rather it be placed at P30 to 35. Now that is steep, especially for me who is forced to ride taxis every night.
Likewise, food prices keep rising every week. One taxi driver who took me home last week said the last time he bought half a cavan of rice, the price was P32 per kilo. A little less than a week later, he was shocked to learn it climbed P6 pesos a kilo.
Steep for everyone, good thing I bought my sack of rice when it was still P22 a kilogram, I'm scared to know just how much I have to spend when I have to buy another 50 kilogram cavan later this month.
I don't even the members of the RTWPB. Not even in my wildest dreams would I trade my place for theirs. They are human first of all and they know there really are prevailing conditions which merit a pay hike.
But then, they are tasked to ensure any increase in pay would not be too much as to put undue stress on existing businesses.
Most workers have a single point of view of the entire economics of business and are thus single minded in asking for a pay hike (just like the militants).
But the reality is every wage increase means less for them. And if the "less for them" becomes too great, they may just opt to close shop and think of other ways to earn a living (like leaving for overseas?).
A closed shop may save the entrepreneur some money, but it would mean total loss of income for the shop's workers. Make no mistake about it, majority of those hiring employees are small to medium enterprises who, like their workers, can hardly cope with the increasing in almost everything.
That's the rub, how will the RTWPB make it Solomon's decision on this ticklish matter?
The board's verdict on April 22 will decide whether the average Cordillera worker will still have enough left over after every payday for other equally essential needs of living in our modern life.
