THE General Alliance of Workers Associations (Gawa) is urging Negrense lawmakers to support the proposal to require private companies to pay their rank-and-file employees a 14th-month pay, its top official said.
Wennie Sancho, secretary-general of Gawa, told SunStar Bacolod that it is time for congressmen from Negros Occidental and senators with roots from the province to show their support to the labor sector.
Considering the high prices of basic goods and services, there should be a supplemental, like in the form of 14th-month pay for the workers in the private sector, Sancho said.
"It is a welcome development for us in the local labor sector," he said, adding that "employees in the government have been enjoying many perks that can also be shared to private sector workers."
Senate Bill No. 2 filed by Senate President Vicente Sotto III has been pending in the Senate since July 2016.
It proposes that employees regardless of their employment status or designation are entitled to 14th-month pay, as long as they worked at least one month during the calendar year.
Sancho said: "there should be no preconditions on the status of employees who will receive such social benefit. It should be across-the-board."
Sancho, also a labor representative to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Western Visayas, said such "augmentation" to the workers is necessary especially amid economic crises.
"The current movement on inflation is alarming. If it continues to rise above six percent, there would surely an impending negative impact to the workers," he added.
The labor leader pointed out that there are some companies already providing 14th-month pay to their workers, but mostly none.
With the pronouncement of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) opposing the proposal, Sancho said they are expecting a long process before it can be realized most probably not within the year.
The Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) is also expected to oppose, he said.
"We remain optimistic that the management would consider this proposal," Sancho said, adding that "if President Rodrigo Duterte really supports the labor sector, he can have the bill certified urgent."