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Friday, December 22, 2006
P125 wage hike gets lot of flak
CEBU CITY -- Fearing a setback in the economy and massive layoffs of workers, both business and labor groups criticized the Lower House's approval of a P125 across-the-board nationwide salary increase.
Labor sector representatives fear the termination of workers' services if the wage increase is approved and implemented. The increase now depends on the Senate's action.
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Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) 7 Regional Director Elias Cayanong said the legislated wage increase will put to waste the regional wage boards' efforts in maintaining industrial peace. Cayanong is concurrent chairman of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Central Visayas.
"Nityabaw man gani ang business sector sa P18 nga atong gihatag, unsa na kaha kaning P125? (The business sector howled when we approved an increase of P18 this year. And now they have to deal with an increase of P125?) Although it's staggered over three years, an increase of P45 per day, per year is still a lot," Canayong said in a phone interview.
For his part, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) president Francis Monera said the wage increase still needs to be properly discussed.
In a phone interview, Monera said an across-the-board wage increase will affect large companies, but it is the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that will greatly suffer.
"Growth is not the same in all companies in the private sector... Companies like call centers can afford to raise their employees' salary but small businesses will likely suffer," he said.
Senate
By a vote of 151-0, the House of Representatives approved last Wednesday night the two-year-old House Bill 345, which seeks the implementation of a P125 across-the-board wage increase, spread over three years.
Representative Roseller Barinaga of Zamboanga del Norte's second district pushed for the bill's approval.
Bobby Maleng of the secretary general's office at the Batasang Pambansa said the bill will be transmitted to the Senate for consideration.
Once the bill reaches the Senate, it is expected to undergo the same scrutiny it went through at the House of Representatives. It will be deliberated on at the committee levels before it will be submitted to the plenary.
Even the organized labor sector criticized the House of Representatives and warned both houses of Congress against "diluting the spirit of the bill by turning it into another political chip for propaganda."
Timing
Marianito Ventura, the labor sector's representative to the RTWPB for more than 10 years, said "the timing and the motive in adopting the bill is no doubt part of the usual drama of the politicians to get the support of the labor sector in the 2007 elections."
The Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL) shared his view. It said the House's leadership adopted the bill to prop up its image after its failed attempt to push for a constituent assembly to amend the Constitution, and not because they believe the bill is overdue.
"It is after all a step, small as it is, towards ensuring a living wage for the working class. But still, the P125 will not suffice, much less alleviate the level of poverty that the other policies pursued by the government have inflicted on us," the group said in a press statement.
The RTWPB granted last July an P18 increase for workers in Cebu, P15 for workers in the provinces of Bohol and Negros Oriental, and P10 for Siquijor and the islands of Camotes and Bantayan.
The rate was agreed on after the board persuaded the business sector not to cut their labor force even with the pay increase.
Balance
Cayanong likened the wage issue to balancing a coin and making it stand on its edge.
"One side is the business sector and the other is the labor group. If the coin fails on either side, that is disastrous to the economy," he said.
Any mandatory wage increase will only end up getting passed on to consumers, through higher prices of basic commodities, he added.
Ventura, for his part, said the bill threatens 90 percent of businesses in the country that are small-scale and vulnerable to economic shocks brought about by such a wage increase.
"The employers' last resort is termination. Thousands of workers could end up losing their jobs. In general terms, ang bill makadaot sa ekonomiya sa Pilipinas (this bill is harmful to the Philippine economy)," Ventura said.
He suggested that the Lower House, after legislating a wage increase, might as well abolish the regional wage boards.
"They are doing our work for us, so it's better if they abolish us na lang," he said. (AIV/With MMM)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro. (December 22, 2006 issue)
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