Thursday, July 13, 2006
N. Mindanao, Caraga wage bodies okay salary increase
LABORERS in Northern Mindanao and Caraga regions will receive an increase in their daily take home pay of P8 to P18 and P14, respectively, before the end of the month.
This was announced yesterday by Labor Secretary Arturo Brion after the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) in Regions 10 and 13 issued their respective new wage orders.
Under the new Wage Order No. 12, workers in Northern Mindanao or Region 10 will receive an increase in their basic pay ranging from P8 to P18, the amount of which will depend on their wage classification.
Based on Wage Category I covering the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan and the municipalities of Tagoloan, Villanueva and Jasaan, the minimum wage rate there will be P234 while those in Wage Category II comprising the cities of Malaybalay, Valencia, Gingoog and Ozamis and the municipalities of Maramag, Quezon, Manolo Fortich and El Salvador will have P229 as their new minimum wage rate.
Wage Category III or those in the cities of Oroquieta and Tangub and the municipalities of Lugait, Opol and Mambajao will have a new minimum wage rate of P224 and those in Wage Category IV or areas not covered by the previous categories will have P219 as minimum wage rate.
Ponciano M. Ligutom, chairman of the Northern Mindanao regional wage board said the decision to extend the classification of areas from two to four in the region “aims to stimulate the development in the provincial districts, promote economic growth and generate employment.”
Caraga regional wage board director Chona Mantilla said workers in Region 13 will receive an additional P14 in their basic pay before the end of the month based on Wage Order No. 7.
According to Mantilla the new minimum wage rates in Caraga for non-agriculture sector and retail and services establishments employing more than 10 workers will be P214 while those in the agriculture sector and retail and service sector employing less than 10 will be P184.
Rebecca Calzado, officer-in-charge of the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC), on the other hand, said the latest wage orders will apply to all minimum wage earners in the private sector in the region "regardless of their position, designation or status and irrespective of the method by which their wages are paid."
However, she stressed that the new wage orders do not cover household or domestic helpers and workers who are in the personal service of another, including family drivers and workers of registered Barangay Micro
Business Enterprises (BMBEs) hired after its effectivity.
The P16 cost of living allowance (Cola) under Wage Order No. 11 for private workers in Northern Mindanao has been maintained as well as the P12 Cola under Wage Order No. 6 will continue to be implemented for employees in Region 13, added Brion. (MSN/Sunnex)
(July 13, 2006 issue)
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