Employers are open to the Labor department’s directive to review minimum wages, but workers should not keep their hopes high as there are “realities” to be considered, the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) said Saturday.
“Wala naman kaming problema sa review… There is a compelling reason, tumaas ang presyo lalo na ‘yan giyera sa Ukraine kaya kailangan siguro i-review,” ECOP president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said during the Laging Handa public briefing.
(We have no problem with the review… There is a compelling reason, prices went up especially with the war in Ukraine, that’s why there is a need to review.)
“Kaya lang meron lang realities… Ito lang ang realities para walang false expectations,” Ortiz-Luis said.
(However, there are realities… These are the realities so that there are no false expectations.)
Among the “realities” to be considered, the ECOP chief said, is that out of the 44 million workers in the labor market, only 16% are in the formal sector or those with employer-employee relationship. Meanwhile, 84% are informal workers such as tricycle drivers, farm workers, and small business owners.
With this, Ortiz-Luis said that only the formal sector will benefit from raising minimum wages since this sector is “under the auspices of DOLE [Department of Labor and Employment].”
“Sa 16% [informal sector worker] hindi pa lahat ‘yun ay minimum wage earners (Among the 16%, not all are minimum wage workers),” he said, noting that only 10% of those in the informal sector are minimum wage earners.
The ECOP chief said that adjusting the minimum wage will create “distortions” as employers will adjust the prices of their goods and services which will have greater effect on the consuming public.
He added that half of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), which employ about 65% of the workforce, have closed shop during the pandemic and it will be difficult for them to raise wages.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III earlier ordered Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPB) to review minimum wages across all 17 regions amid the skyrocketing prices of fuel.
Bello said the current daily minimum wage in the National Capital Region (NCR), for instance, of P537 may no longer be enough to cope with the price of basic commodities such as food, electricity and water bills.
Ortiz-Luis said, “Wala kaming objection na reviewhin ‘yan (We have no objection in reviewing it).”
He admitted that minimum wage is not a “living wage” or “not intended to support a family of four or five,” noting that “minimum wage is an entry level wage” and is intended for students who just graduated so that they will not be abused by employers. —KG, GMA News
ECOP: No problem with minimum wage review but don’t keep hopes high
Source: News Panda Philippines
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