A PUBLIC hearing will be conducted this afternoon by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) on two petitions from two labor groups for a wage increase in Central Visayas.
RTWPB 7 Secretary Exequiel Sarcauga identified the petitioners as the Progressive Independent Alliance of Labor Organizations (PIALO) and the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP).
PIALO, through coordinator Metodio Belarmino, asked for a P136 daily wage increase, citing high prices of prime commodities, inflation and the effects of globalization.
ALU-TUCP, on the other hand, concluded after a study that the minimum wage should be P385 a day because of the rising cost of living.
But Raymond Mendoza and Alex Aguilar, who filed the petition, said they are only asking for a P75 increase because they also understand the business sector’s situation.
Both Mendoza and Aguilar don’t believe the RTWPB 7 will approve a petition for wage increase above P75, going by its record.
In 2006, when they asked for P75, only an increase of P15 was approved, raising the minimum wage from P223 to the present P241 in Metro Cebu. (The floor wage is lower in other parts of the region.)
Mendoza said it’s better to have P15 than none at all.
Invitation
RTWPB Chairman Elias Cayanong said he is inviting all affected sectors to attend the hearing at 1 p.m. today at the Cebu Grand Hotel, so they can air their sentiments.
Cayanong, concurrently the director of the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) 7, said that if there’s a need for a wage increase, the rate will depend on the outcome of the public hearings in Cebu, Bohol and Oriental Negros.
Invited to attend the hearing are labor leaders and workers, business owners and managers, and officials of government agencies.
“Interested parties or those who will be affected by the petition for wage increase may participate in the hearing,” Cayanong said. (EOB)
