2 days ago
Labor groups 'worried' about Marcos' statement on wage hike
Labor groups on Friday expressed concerns over President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr.'s statement about reviewing the proposed hike in minimum wage for workers.
Lawyer Sonny Matula of the Federation of Free Workers emphasized that the bill granting a P200 increase on the daily minimum wage has already undergone scrutiny by lawmakers.
'Nababahala kami sa statement na dapat dumaan pa ito sa comprehensive review. Hindi na kinakailangan ang opinion ng Wage Boards sapagkat dumaan na ito sa mga debate and deliberation sa House at saka sa Senado,' Matula said.
(We are concerned about it being subjected to a review and the Palace seeking the opinion of the wage boards. This bill has gone through debates in the House and Senate.)
"Hindi naman po Court of Appeals ng Kongreso ang ating mga Wage board na dapat i-consulta pa sila sa nangyaring pagpasa o pinasang panukalang batas," added Matula.
(The wage board is not the Court of Appeals which should be consulted over a bill already passed by Congress.)
The statement comes after Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said that Marcos will look into the economic implications of the proposed increase.
'We will look at the economic implications of this and how to resolve this with the opinion of the wage boards since the wage boards are also the creations of the Congress,''' Castro said.
Matula, however, urged Marcos to support the bill.
"Dapat ay aprobahan na [ang wage hike] sapagkat matagal na itong kinakailangan," he said.
(This should be approved as soon as possible because the public needs it badly.)
"Palagay ko ay isang insulto para sa mga representante sa House at sa ating mga Senador na konsultahin pa yung ating mga regional wage boards," added Matula.
(It would be an insult to the House and Senate members if they still had to consult the regional wage boards.)
GMA News Online has reached out to the Palace for comment, but it has yet to reply as of posting time.
Long overdue
Jerome Adonis of Kilusang Mayo Uno backed Matula's call and also emphasized that a wage increase has been "long overdue."
'The labor sector has long fought for the P200 wage hike for minimum wage earners, and this is even small compared with the family living wage. Even so, we welcome this increase because this is long overdue. The Senate even passed its version way back in 2024,' Adonis said.
'Dahil dumaan na nga sa mahabang debate sa Kongreso, sa Senado, nag-present na ang both sides ng mga statistics na ito po ay kayang kaya at, in fact, mas maliit pa nga [sa ideal]. So wala nang rason ang presidente para hindi ito pirmahan,' he added.
(This has already been debated in the House, Senate, and both sides have already put forward their points. It has been proven that this is doable, and the proposed amounts are even lower than what is ideal, so the President has no reason not to sign it.)
The House version of the wage hike measure is P200 per day, a higher amount compared to the Senate version, which is just pegged at P100. The House and the Senate will have to reconcile their differing versions and ratify the reconciled version before the 19th Congress ends on June 13 for the bill to be ready for the President's signature.
Veto?
Senator Joel Villanueva on Thursday expressed concern regarding the House of Representatives' approval of the bill and said that it might only get vetoed if adopted by the Senate.
'Parang ang tingin natin 'pag nangyari 'yan, diretsong veto. 'Yan ang kailangan din natin pagtuunan ng pansin kung ia-adopt natin 'yan kasi baka 'yan din 'yung dahilan ng iba na nandun sa Kamara para masiguro na ma-veto 'yan,' Villanueva told reporters.
(I think that it may be directly vetoed by the President. That's what we also need to look at if we are going to adopt that because some House members may just use that to ensure that the bill will get vetoed.)
Adonis, however, believes that this should not be a hindrance.
'Kaya bagaman magkaibang bersyon, sana hindi na siya hadlang at kaagad mag-convene ang bicameral committee ng Senado at Kongreso para i-decide kung magkano talaga... Huwag na nilang paghintayin yung mga manggagawa kasi 36 years tayong naghintay para sa legislative wage increase,' Adonis said.
(So even if the bill has different versions, this should not be a hurdle, and Congress should immediately decide on the final amount and send it to the President for signature. They should not make the workers wait even longer because they have been waiting for this for 36 years.) —VAL, GMA Integrated News
