Calabarzon Workers Want Pay Change

Philliphine : The petition to raise the minimum wage in the area to P750 was submitted by 12 labor organizations in Calabarzon under the name Workers Initiative for Wage Increase (WIN4WIN). They claimed that increasing prices qualify as a “supervening event” and warrant a new wage order.

The petition aims to increase the daily minimum wage across four area classifications. At the moment, the minimum wage varies depending on the type of work and whether it is performed in a municipality, component city, or metropolitan area, ranging from P350 to P470. The petition requests increases in the minimum wages for the various classifications of P280, P321, P360, and P400, respectively.

There are various minimum wages in our region depending on where we work, WIN4WIN spokesperson Mary Ann Castillo said in a press release in Filipino. In southern Tagalog, which has since been divided into Calabarzon and Mimaropa, she continued, “wage rationalization has been a burden to workers for decades.

Workers will be better able to handle rising prices, according to WIN4WIN, who also noted that “wages have already decreased by P90 as a result of rising prices.”

Crossing organisational boundaries

The following unions and labor organizations are part of WIN4WIN:

Federation of Free Workers, Confederation of Filipino Workers, National Federation of Labor Union, Drug, Food and Allied Workers Federation, Kilos na Manggagawa Southern Tagalog, TF2-Kilos Damit, Metal Workers Alliance of the Philippines, Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino Southern Tagalog, Kilusang Mayo Uno, Workers Assistance Center, Workers in Semiconductor and Electronics Network (WISENET), Kilusan ng Manggagawang Mak

The united petition is signed by labor organizations that have historically competed with one another for members and power. Castillo added, “Now, we are demonstrating a broad unification of workers in [Calabarzon] for a unified minimum wage for all workers in the region.

The most recent wage order to increase minimum wages was issued by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board for Calabarzon in June 2022, with the second tranche of that increase implemented in December of that same year. However, according to WIN4WIN, a “supervening event” that would necessitate the issuance of a new wage order following the Wage Rationalization Act is the increase in the cost of goods and services.

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Regional boards must conduct an investigation and weigh issuing a wage order “whenever conditions in the region so warrant,” according to the Wage Rationalization Act.

The “demand for living wages,” changes in the cost of living, and the requirements of employees and their families are some of the factors taken into consideration when determining a region’s minimum wage. The need “to induce industries to invest in the countryside,” the implications for job creation, and the “fair return of the capital invested and capacity to pay of employers” are additional considerations that boards must ensure minimum wages take into account.

The same law emphasizes that it is the state’s policy to “promote collective bargaining as the primary mode of settling wages and other terms and conditions of employment,” but for workers who are subject to harassment, intimidation, and violence for joining unions and welfare associations, this is a route that has grown more challenging.

Employers: Small businesses will be harmed by wage increases

In addition to the wage petitions, several bills to raise the minimum wage have been submitted to the House and Senate as workers struggle to make ends meet in the face of rising costs.

The Philippines Employers Confederation issued a warning against raising the minimum wage in May, claiming that doing so would hurt smaller businesses. The business community stated that it would be preferable for the government to support the survival of micro, small, and medium-sized businesses.

“It is impossible to completely rule out the possibility of job losses and rising product prices as a result of raising the minimum wage. As an alternative, businesses might decide it’s wiser to shut down or charge customers more “ECOP then stated.

“Even if such increase is limited to those earning the minimum wage, it leads to wage distortion, a situation that could lead to the eradication of the current salary structure within the company,” the author writes.