Thursday, November 03, 2005
Board open to wage hike bid
The Central Visayas wage board will take up in its next meeting the possibility of raising the pay of minimum-wage earners in the region, based on the behavior of prices of goods.
Department of Labor and Employment 7 Director Rodolfo Sabulao said that with the implementation of the Reformed Value-Added Tax (RVAT) Law, the board will determine if the additional tax will have an “adverse effect on the purchasing power of the private sector.”
However, local labor groups have not yet decided to file petitions for wage increase.
Sabulao serves as chairman of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB).
Marianito Ventura, of the Trade Unions of the Philippines Allied Services, and Joy Lim, spokesperson of the Associated Labor Unions, said they have yet to consult their union members.
Sabulao assured workers, though, that although the RTWPB 7 may only issue another wage order by June next year, the law mandates them to accept and evaluate petitions for wage increase.
Emergency
They may also issue a wage order in case an emergency arises and requires them to provide relief to minimum-wage earners through a pay adjustment.
Wage Order 11, which took effect last June 16, set the minimum wage of Metro Cebu workers at P223 and workers in the rest of the region at P220, from the previous rate of P208.
For its part, the Partido ng Manggagawang Pilipino (PMP) is seeking a legislated wage increase, as it expressed dismay over the RTWPB’s failure to set just wages.
PMP regional coordinator Dennis Derije said they will also ask for an income tax exemption for minimum-wage earners, owing to the RVAT.
Ventura, also RTWPB 7’s labor representative, said the board will take up price monitoring reports and take note of changes in
the prices.
Hotline
Sabulao said the wage board will determine the effects of the RVAT on goods during its regular meeting on Nov. 17.
Meanwhile, consumers can report unscrupulous traders and inquire about the prevailing prices of goods through a hotline that
the Cebu City Hall will put up as part of its RVAT monitoring.
City Administrator Francisco Fernandez said they will announce the hotline number when the local price monitoring council convenes at 2 p.m. today.
Aside from complaints of overpricing, Fernandez said they will also entertain inquiries on the prevailing price ceiling of basic commodities, as monitored by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).
The DTI regional office, for its part, also set up hotline 2550036 for consumers to report extreme price swings or to get clarifications on RVAT.
Unusual
In a separate interview, Rep. Antonio Cuenco (Cebu City, south district) said he will propose a resolution that will seek to exempt health services and medicines from RVAT.
Cuenco said vital services such as those provided by hospitals should be spared from additional taxes to make them affordable for the poor.
He said it would be difficult to have resolutions and bills seeking to exempt or defer the implementation of the RVAT, “but we should give it a try.”
Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, for her part, is calling on all local chief executives in the province to activate their price monitoring councils to check on “unusual” increases of prices of commodities.
She also hopes to meet bus operators that use the South Bus Terminal.
“We hope to arrive at an acceptable agreement,” she said, adding that she will find ways to cushion the effect of the RVAT on the riding public as well as on the bus operators.
Prices stable
Department of Energy Visayas Field Office Director Antonio Labios said prices of petroleum products sold outside urban centers are expected to be higher due to “hauling” costs.
However, under the new tax measure, petroleum products are expected to cost only six percent more with the government’s mitigating measures, specifically the reduction of the excise tax.
Labios urged consumers to call up the DOE-Visayas office for queries or to report questionable increase in the prices of petroleum products.
The DOE, in partnership with the Department of Finance, came up with posters about the RVAT Law.
They urged oil companies to place the posters in their gasoline outlets.
An Oct. 27 price monitoring report of goods sold in Cebu City showed prices of canned fish, processed milk, coffee, laundry soap, detergent bar, salt, flour and construction materials, like cement, GI sheet and steel bars, remained stable.
From Oct. 20 to 27, the increases in the prices of some brands ranged from P0.35 to P1.95, according to the report. (CYR/LCR/MBG/AIV)
(November 3, 2005 issue)
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