A WEEK before his third State of the Nation Address (SONA), the National Wage Coalition (NWC) is asking President Marcos Jr. to certify as “urgent” the P150 legislated wage hike pending in Congress.
In a press conference, the NWC asked Marcos to direct the House of Representatives to hasten the passage of the measure that calls for an across-the-board wage increase.
“The National Wage Coalition demands President Bongbong Marcos to certify as urgent the proposed legislative House bills for across-the-board wage increases,” the NWC said. “Once certified, the House of Representatives must act with utmost urgency.”
The group said this is necessary since the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPB) has once again proven its inability to provide decent wage increases to workers, referring to the recent P35 wage increase approved by the National Capital Region (NCR) wage board.
“(Legislated wage hike) will enable workers to beat the ever-turbulent nature of inflation and provide them with livable wages,” said NWC.
“The Regional Wage Boards have once again proven their unreliability and irrelevance. The only way forward is through the legislated bills languishing in the House of Representatives,” it added.
With the SONA just a week away, the NWC vowed to ramp up their call for Marcos to take action.
“The National Wage Coalition will keep ramping up the pressure as the President’s SONA approaches. Throughout this week, the Coalition’s constituent organizations and their respective locals and affiliates shall hold actions to call for the long-awaited across-the-board wage increase,” it stated.
“The Coalition will push forward with our demands until all of our workers receive a much-needed and livable wage,” added NWC.
The Federation of Free Workers (FFW) questioned the date of effectivity of the latest wage order, saying it should be in effect today, Tuesday, and not tomorrow, Wednesday.
In a short statement, FFW President Sonny Matula said the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is mistaken in saying Wage Order No. NCR-25 is taking effect on July 17.
“After the affirmation on June 28, 2024, and the subsequent authorization for its publication on July 1, 2024, the FFW emphasizes that the computation of the 15-day effectivity period must strictly adhere to existing laws and established jurisprudence,” said Matula.
“So as not to shortchange the workers, the FFW asserts that the wage order must take effect on July 16, 2024, not July 17, 2024,” he added.
Matula cited as basis provisions of Republic Act No. 386, or the Civil Code of the Philippines, which states that the wage order shall take effect “after 15 days following the completion of their publication”.
The approval will lead to wage adjustments from P610 to P645 for the non-agriculture sector and from P573 to P608 for the agriculture sector, service and retail establishments employing 15 or fewer workers and manufacturing establishments regularly employing fewer than 10 workers.
