Senator Grace Poe appealed to employers to provide allowances and benefits to their workers to help them cope with the rising prices of commodities and fuel products.
Poe said the assistance will help the country’s wage earners get by as the Senate approved on third and final reading the P100 wage hike bill.
“I urge employers with the means to provide supplementary allowances or benefits to extend this assistance to their employees,” said the veteran legislator who is also a co-author of the bill.
“I am sure the businesses that truly care about their workers would find a way to make necessary adjustments.”
“I am sure the businesses that truly care about their workers would find a way to make necessary adjustments,” the seasoned lawmaker added.
The proposed wage hike will benefit the workers in the private sector.
The lady senator pointed out that the last legislated national wage hike was implemented in the Philippines 35 years ago.
In 1989, the Wage Rationalization Act ordered a ₱25 hike from the national minimum wage of ₱64.
“Bagama’t may significant na pagtaas na ang minimum wage simula noon. Hirap maramdaman ito ng ating mga kababayan dahil sa patuloy na pagtaas ng presyo ng mga bilihin,” she said.
“Para sa karamihan, kahit anong sipag at diskarte ay talagang di pa rin sapat,” Poe added.
She cited a January 2024 study by IBON foundation which said that a family of five in Metro Manila needs ₱1,193 a day or ₱25,946 a month to live decently.
“However, the existing minimum wage in the region is still pegged at ₱610 – o kalahati lamang ng wage standard,” Poe said.
“Ano bang mabibili natin sa ₱610?”
“Ano bang mabibili natin sa ₱610? Considering the food threshold, a family of five will need around ₱300 daily to meet the minimum basic food needs,” she added.
Households are left with just around ₱310 to cover basic non-food needs such as clothing, housing, light, water, medical care, education, transportation and communication, household operations and personal care, which Poe said was not enough.
In addressing concerns that the proposal will impact small businesses, she reiterated that the intent of the bill remains faithful to the exemptions on wage increase set under Republic Act Nos. 6272 or the Wage Rationalization Act and 9178 or the Barangay Micro Business Enterprises Act.
These laws cover businesses with less than 10 employees and a capitalization of not more than P3 million.
Poe said the bill is a worthy pursuit to provide the hardworking Filipino labor force with a decent living wage that will allow their families to enjoy a respectable standard of living.
“In the end, the labor sector is the backbone of our economy. Pagtulung-tulungan nating mabigyan ang ating mga manggagawa ng disenteng buhay ang kanilang pamilya,” she concluded.
