Eastern Visayas workers to get pay hike starting June 25

TACLOBAN CITY, June 13 -- The new wage order raising the daily pay of minimum wage earners in Eastern Visayas from PHP20 to PHP30 will take effect on June 25, the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) announced on Wednesday.

Citing Wage Order No. 20, Regional Tripartite and Wages Productivity Board Chairman (RTWPB) Chairman Cyril Ticao said there are varied adjustments depending on the nature of industry and number of workers.

From a minimum daily pay of PHP285 under old Wage Order, workers in the non-agriculture sector including sugar mills are entitled to a PHP305 daily wage under the new order, said Ticao, the director of the Department of Labor and Employment in Region 8.

The board ruled to increase the pay for those employed in the retail services (with 11 up to 30 workers) to PHP305 from PHP275. For workers in smaller retail businesses (with 10 employees and below), the new minimum daily pay is PHP275 or a PHP30 hike.

Those employers in cottage and handicraft industries will receive a daily pay of PHP275 or PHP22 higher than the old wage rate.

Workers in the farming sector, the lowest income earners covered by the old directive, got a daily pay of PHP275 under Wage Order No. 20. The board approved a PHP24 wage adjustment for sugar farms and PHP30 for other farm-related businesses.

The wage adjustment will take effect 15 days after its publication in a local newspaper on June 10.

“We will conduct information drive to inform both employers and workers about the wage adjustment. The new wage order recognizes the need to improve worker’s productivity and income, enhance enterprise competitiveness, and strengthen the link between pay and productivity,” Ticao said.

The board reviewed the region’s wage structure through “motu proprio” noting the increasing prices of fuel and basic commodities. “Motu proprio” is an official act taken without a formal request from any party.

The consultations checked the economic conditions, adjustment of prices of basic goods and services, and impact of wage adjustment to both workers and business owners. The seven-member regional wage board signed the new order on May 7.

Since February, the wage body has been evaluating the impact of Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law to workers in the private sector.

President Rodrigo Duterte on December 19, 2017 signed the TRAIN law, which imposes higher taxes on fuel, cars, coal, tobacco, mining, and some sugar-sweetened beverages.

The measure exempts those earning an annual taxable income of PHP250,000 and below from paying personal income tax. The board is convinced that excise tax in petroleum products has raised the prices of basic goods and services.

The regional board in Eastern Visayas is a tripartite body composed of six members -- three representatives from the government, two from the workers sector and one from the employers sector. (SQM/PNA)