THE Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Western Visayas will initiate action on wage determination by motu proprio, one of its members said.
Wennie Sancho, labor representative to the RTWPB-Western Visayas, said the move is backed by a resolution unanimously approved by the Board during its regular meeting on April 23.
Sancho said it must be recalled that in their last April 8 meeting, the two management representatives, Luis Estrella and Reynaldo Ambao, manifested their disapproval of the manifestation of the labor sector for a P20 to P25 per day Pandemic Emergency Relief Allowance (Pera) as an immediate economic relief amid the pandemic.
The manifestation was submitted by Sancho and fellow labor representative Hernani Braza on October 19, 2020.
The issue was then referred to the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) for clarification as to whether the manifestation is valid for the Board to take appropriate action.
"In a reply letter to the Board dated last April 19, NWPC Executive Director Maria Criselda Sy clarified that under the Omnibus Rules on Minimum Wage Determination, commencement of the minimum wage determination process maybe done motu proprio by the Board or by petition of any party," he added.
The labor sector earlier said it will push for a minimum wage increase of P100 per day if the Board will not grant its request for relief allowance.
At present, minimum wage workers in the region earn from P310 to P395 per day depending on their classification.
Under Wage Order No. 25, which took effect in November 2019, a P30 daily pay hike was provided for workers among non-agriculture, industrial and commercial establishments employing more than 10 employees.
From the previous P350 plus cost of living allowance (Cola) of P15, totaling P365 per day, the prevailing rate is P395.
Employees from establishments with less than 10 workers are receiving additional P15, making the wage rate P310 per day.
For the agricultural sector, plantation workers received a P20 increase.
From the previous P295 per day, the existing minimum wage rate under this sector is P315.
Sancho, also the secretary general of the General Alliance of Workers Associations, said the NWPC explained that the labor sector manifestation and submitted position paper could not be likened to a petition.
This is because the labor representatives were merely seeking the Board's discussion on the propriety of granting Pera considering the regional socio-economic conditions, he said.
For Sancho, the NWPC supported the conclusion in the submitted position paper that "the 10 percent erosion on the value of the purchasing power of the nominal wage can be used as a warning signal to review whether the prevailing minimum wage still serves its purpose in protecting the vulnerable workers from the vagaries of the market."
The NWPC also advised the Board by way of policy direction that it may convene and review whether the regional socio-economic conditions could support the granting of said proposed Pera considering the manifestation and position paper of the labor sector representatives.
Then, the Board shall decide as a collegial body whether it will commence the wage determination process motu propio, he stressed.
The next regular meeting of the RTWPB-Western Visayas to discuss the matter is on May 12.