A LABOR leader in Negros Occidental has expressed optimism that the upcoming National Wage Board Conference will address issues concerning wages in the country, including Western Visayas.
Wennie Sancho, labor representative to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Western Visayas, yesterday, May 28, said members of all 17 wage boards in the country are gathering for a conference in Manila on June 5.
Sancho, also the secretary general of the General Alliance of Workers Association (Gawa), said among the issues to be underscored during the conference include the wage increase.
"The Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) has called for this conference to expedite the issuance of an order on wage hike, which is also the instruction of President Rodrigo Duterte," he said.
RTWPB-Western Visayas is one of at least four regional wage boards in the country which are about to issue a new wage order.
"Thus, this development is more favorable to the workers in Western Visayas unlike of those in other regions which have yet to establish supervening conditions and still subject to the approval of the National Wages and Productivity Commission before having wage increase," the labor leader added.
Under the current Wage Order No. 23, which expired on March 16, the daily minimum wage rate in non-agriculture, industrial and commercial establishments in Western Visayas employing more than 10 workers is P323.50.
For those employing less than 10 workers, the existing rate is P271.50.
Workers in the agriculture sector, meanwhile, are receiving daily minimum wages of P281.50 and P271.50 for plantation and non-plantation, respectively.
On January 22, the Philippine Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Workers Union-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (Paciwu-TUCP) filed a petition asking for a P130 to P150 increase depending on the worker's classification.
Sancho said they might also discuss during the conference the "proposed" national wage.
Sancho said a uniform national wage rate would be favorable to the regions as for one, it will address wage disparity problems.
There is only a small difference in the prices of basic goods and services but the wage disparity is so big resulting in lower purchasing power for other regions which salaries are lower than Manila, he stressed.
"If RTWPB-Western Visayas can issue a Wage Order, that would be a partial compliance to whatever national wage that may be issued," Sancho added.
Among the concerns to be raised by local labor leader during the conference include the "very small" wage increase proposal of the management sector in the province.
Earlier, the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) proposed for a P10 to P31 increase inclusive of cost of living allowance worth P5.
Also, Sancho will raise the plight of the sugar industry workers and the need for guidelines if ever the government will push for a uniform national wage. (EPN)