Senators push for another wage hike in 20th Congress
Among the 10 priority bills of Senator Joel Villanueva, which he filed on Monday, was the Living Wage Act, which aims to fairly adjust the minimum wage set by each regional wage board to provide a decent life for workers.
'At the end of the day, we wanted to make sure na 'yung batayan ay living wage. Ang batayan ay hindi lang basta itaas ang sweldo, kundi doon sa batayan na magkakaroon naman ng disenteng buhay 'yung ating mga manggagawa,' Villanueva said.
(At the end of the day, we wanted to ensure that the basis is a living wage. The goal is not just to increase the salary but to base it on a standard that would provide our workers a decent life.)
Seasoned senator Loren Legarda also included the Living Wage Act as one of her top 10 bills.
Meanwhile, Senator Bong Go filed a bill seeking a P100 across-the-board daily wage hike.
He said that the P50 wage increase recently approved for workers in the National Capital Region (NCR) may be 'insufficient' considering the current economic conditions.
'Kulang 'yung singkwenta sa NCR sa totoo lang. Habang tumataas 'yung bilihin ay kulang po 'yung singkwenta. Kaya sana po'y maipasa itong isang daan [piso],' Go said.
(That P50 increase in the NCR is not enough, honestly, considering that the price of goods increases. So I hope that the P100 wage increase will be passed.)
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Monday announced that the NCR Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) issued Wage Order No. 26, which grants a P50 wage hike.
This means that at least 1.2 million minimum wage earners in the NCR are set to receive higher salaries next month.
Senator Robin Padilla, on the other hand, filed a bill that aims to provide a P150 minimum wage increase for employees and workers in the private sector.
Senator Imee Marcos also filed the National Minimum Wage Act on Tuesday.
To recall, in the 19th Congress, the proposed legislated minimum wage hike, which was pegged at P200 at the House of Representatives and P100 in the Senate, did not pass into law because the two chambers failed to reconcile them on time.
President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. will study if a legislated wage hike would result in layoffs, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro said Tuesday.
''Muli, pag-aaralan ito kung kakayanin ba talaga, kasi kung magdudulot naman ito ng lay-off dahil hindi kakayanin nung karamihan maliliit na mga negosyante, mas marami pong mahihirapang mga manggagawa dahil baka mawalan sila ng trabaho,'' Castro said at a briefing.
(Again, he will study if this will result in layoffs. If this can't be enforced by small businessmen, many workers might suffer as they may lose their jobs.) —VAL, GMA Integrated News
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