On Monday, Aug. 24, 2026, transport group Piston Cebu backed a petition by Bien Cebu seeking a uniform P1,200 daily minimum wage across Central Visayas during an RTWPB 7 public hearing.
Raising current rates—P540 for Class A and P500 for Class B areas—to P1,200 would require increases of P660 and P700, respectively, as regional headline inflation reached 10.8 percent in May.
Cebu IT-BPM industry leaders warned that a steep rise in labor costs could hurt regional competitiveness, while RTWPB 7 scheduled further public hearings in Dumaguete City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Cebu City.
TRANSPORT group Pagkakaisa ng mga Samahan ng Tsuper at Opereytor Nationwide (Piston) Cebu backed a petition Monday, Aug. 24, 2026, to set Central Visayas’ daily minimum wage at P1,200, saying higher pay would help workers cope with rising living costs and cushion commuters from possible fare increases.
Piston Cebu chairman Greg Perez said the group joined labor organizations in a picket outside the Department of Education’s Ecotech Center in Barangay Lahug, Cebu City, where the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) 7 held the first public hearing in this year’s minimum wage determination process.
At the center of the campaign is a petition filed June 17 by the BPO Industry Employees’ Network (Bien) Cebu seeking a uniform P1,200 daily minimum wage across Central Visayas.
What workers are seeking
The P1,200 is the proposed new daily minimum wage, not the amount of the increase.
Workers in Class A areas currently receive at least P540 a day, while those in Class B areas receive P500. Raising both rates to P1,200 would require increases of P660 and P700, respectively.
The current rates were set under Wage Order ROVII-26, which took effect Oct. 4, 2025. It granted increases of P37 to P47 a day and consolidated the previous Classes B and C into a single Class B category.
Bien Cebu filed its petition less than nine months after the wage order took effect, citing sharp increases in fuel, food, transportation, electricity and housing costs.
The P1,200 proposal predates the petition. Cebu-based labor groups led by Alyansa sa mga Mamumuo sa Sugbo-Kilusang Mayo Uno called for a P1,200 national minimum wage in late April, ahead of Labor Day.
Piston Cebu also included a P1,200 national minimum wage among its demands during its March 19 transport strike, along with lower fuel prices, the removal of fuel taxes and a P5 fare increase.
Bien Cebu later brought the P1,200 proposal into the regional wage-setting process through its formal petition.
Wage review underway
RTWPB 7 began public consultations June 25 and received several proposals, including Bien Cebu’s P1,200 uniform regional minimum wage and Partido Manggagawa’s proposed P100 across-the-board emergency increase.
Other labor representatives have sought increases of P660 in Class A areas and P700 in Class B areas, which would bring both minimum wage rates to P1,200.
The formal wage determination process began after RTWPB 7 published its notice of public hearing Aug. 5, 60 days before the anniversary of the current wage order.
Monday’s Cebu City hearing was the first of four. RTWPB 7 will weigh the positions of workers, employers and government representatives, along with the cost of living, inflation, employment, productivity and businesses’ ability to pay, before deciding whether to issue a new wage order.
Why it matters
The wage push comes as Central Visayas faces some of the country’s steepest price increases.
Regional inflation reached 10.8 percent in May. For households in the bottom 30 percent income group, inflation hit 15.4 percent, with food and non-alcoholic beverages up 18.8 percent and transportation costs up 23.5 percent.
Price increases have since slowed but remain high. Headline inflation eased to 8.7 percent in July from 10.1 percent in June, while inflation for the bottom 30 percent income households slowed to 11.6 percent from 13.9 percent.
Bien Cebu said wages have failed to keep pace with basic expenses and has also sought adjustments for workers earning above the minimum to prevent wage distortion if its petition is approved.
Business and industry representatives have urged caution. Cebu IT-BPM industry leaders have acknowledged workers’ declining purchasing power but warned that a steep rise in labor costs could hurt Cebu’s competitiveness against outsourcing destinations such as India and Vietnam. They have instead pushed for more investment in upskilling and higher-value jobs.
Wages and fares
For Piston Cebu, the wage campaign is closely tied to rising fuel costs and their impact on drivers and commuters.
Perez said in March that his daily diesel expense for the same route had doubled from about P1,000 to P2,000, while his take-home income fell from about P1,000 to as low as P300.
Piston Cebu sought a P5 fare increase at the time to offset higher operating costs.
Separately, the national Piston organization filed a petition with the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board on April 20 seeking a provisional P10 increase in the minimum traditional jeepney fare, which would raise the base fare from P13 to P23.
Piston Cebu said higher wages across industries would strengthen workers’ purchasing power and help cushion commuters if rising fuel and operating costs eventually lead to fare increases.
The group said wage and fare issues should be addressed together so drivers do not have to absorb higher fuel costs while commuters with stagnant wages are asked to pay more.
What’s next
RTWPB 7 will continue its public hearings Tuesday, Aug. 25, in Dumaguete City, followed by Lapu-Lapu City on Sept. 3 and another Cebu City hearing on Sept. 4 before deciding whether to issue a new minimum wage order. / CDF