Board grants pay hike in NCR, Western Visayas

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) wage boards have approved pay hikes for workers in the National Capital Region (NCR) and Western Visayas.

The Wage Order No. NCR-23 issued by the DOLE Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB)-NCR on May 13, 2022, granted the P33 salary increase for NCR workers.

This will bring the daily minimum wage rate in the region to P570 for employees in the non-agriculture sector and P533 for the workers in said sector.

In Western Visayas, the wage hike for workers in non-agriculture, industrial, and commercial establishments is between P55 and P110 depending on the number of employees.

The region’s wage board also approved the P95 salary increase for workers in the agriculture sector.

It also granted a P500 monthly wage hike for domestic workers.

The orders will take effect 15 days after publication in a newspaper of general circulation.

Groups earlier filed petitions calling for the increase of the daily minimum wage, particularly in the national capital region and several regions in the Visayas, following the increase in prices of basic commodities brought about by the series of oil price hikes due to the conflict in Ukraine.

They proposed a P213 to P250 increase.

In a statement, l;abor group Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) slammed the P33 approved minimum wage increase, saying it is "woefully inadequate."

"It is not even enough to allow workers to recover the lost value of their wages," SENTRO said.

"Wage erosion has worsened since then. After all, the inflation rate in April 2022 in the NCR climbed to 4.4 percent and 5.1 percent outside the NCR. Once again, the RTWPBs have failed the workers. It is high time we abolish it and go back to a national wage setting mechanism," it added.

The Employers' Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), however, is worried particularly for the small businesses, especially those affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic.

ECOP president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said the pay increase may discourage small businesses to expand, open or hire more employees.

In a radio interview on Sunday, May 15, 2022, Bello said he is expecting other regional wage boards to also issue wage hike orders.

Trending

No stories found.

Just in

No stories found.

Branded Content

No stories found.
SunStar Publishing Inc.
www.sunstar.com.ph