The Central Visayas wage board has scheduled a series of public hearings on the wage hike petitions filed by different labor groups in Bohol and the rest of the region amid the soaring prices of basic goods.
According to Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB)-7 chairperson Lilia Estillore, they have received three petitions for a wage hike in both the private sector and for domestic helpers.
The public hearing in Bohol will be conducted at the Kew Hotel in Tagbilaran City on August 10, 2023.
“We hope na tanan diha maka attend hasta ang mga gikan sa mga sa municipality dinha sa Bohol para makita gyud nato og unsa gyud ang dapat na minimum wage na e-implement nato sa ilahang mga lugar,”
Four other consultations will be held in Bogo City on July 10, Cebu City on July 26, Naga on August 1 and Negros Oriental on August 11.
The Partido Manggagawa-Cebu (PM-Cebu) has petitioned for increase of the minimum wage in the region by P100.
PM-Cebu’s petition is supported by various labor groups including the Bohol Alliance of Labor Organizations (BALO), Sentro ng Nagkakaisa sa Progresibong Manggawa (SENTRO), Globalwear Employees Union-PIGLAS (GEU-PIGLAS), Association of Globalwear Supervisory Employees Union–PIGLAS (AGSEU-PIGLAS), MEPZ Workers Alliance (MWA). ), Workers Organization of LAMI Food (WOLF), Prince Warehouse Club Mandaue Employees Union–LAW (PWCMEU – LAW), ILAW–Buklod ng Manggagawa-United Miners of Carmen Copper (IBM-UMCC-WSN), KEPCO Cebu Employees Union-Workers Solidarity Network (KCEA-WSN), and ILAW sa Buklod ng Manggagawa sa General Milling Corporation (IBM-GMC)
Another group has petitioned to raise the minimum wage by P292.50 for private workers and by P1,000 per month for domestic helpers.
Part of the group are Alvin Pino, president of the LONBISCO Employees Organization; Nicholou Malazarte, president of the Union Bank Employees Association (UBEA); Metudio Belarmino, spokesperson of the Cebu Labor Coalition; Alan Gascon, a member of the board of directors of the Cebu City Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (CCTIPC); Clarisa Torino, president of the United Domestic Workers of the Philippines; and Bonifacio Tiongzon, president of Transasia Union.
Current minimum wage in the region is at P385 for private workers and P5,000 per month for domestic helpers.
Estillore said the groups cited the skyrocketing of prices of basic commodities as reason for the petition.
“The petitions are for the same and usual reasons which include the high and rising of prices sa mga pamaliton and one year naman pud since our last wage increase,” she added.
In June last year, the RTWPB-7 approved a P-31 minimum wage increase in the private sector and P500 monthly increase for domestic workers.
The minimum wage hike took effect on June 14, 2022. (A. Doydora)