DAVAO CITY, 16 November — Various labor federations in Mindanao have decided not to file any new petition for salary adjustments before the regional wage board, pressing instead for a legislated increase.
Mindanao-based leaders of the moderate Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) and its affiliate labor federations also expressed openness to link up with the militant Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) in pressing for a 125-peso across-the-board wage hike legislated by Congress.
Jorge Alegarbes, TUCP national executive board member and labor sector representative to the Regional Tripartite and Wages Board (RTWPB) in Davao, said workers in the south opted not to file new wage petitions in order not to jeopardize the P125-wage increase bill pending in Congress.
Alegarbes, also president of the Davao City-based Associated Trade Unions (ATU), noted that the bill filed by Bayan Muna Rep. Crispin Beltran has gained headway after the House committee on labor approved it for plenary deliberation last month.
He said the Senate version of the wage increase also appears to be gaining support from some senators.
“We have to push for P125 wage increase because this is the sentiment of the local unions affiliated with us,” he said. Alegarbes said they expect Beltran, also the KMU chair, and the two other representatives of Bayan Muna to push for the P125 wage increase demand.
Felix Irag, KMU-Southern Mindanao secretary-general, said they will welcome an alliance with any group supporting the demands for a P125 wage increase. Irag said they are in fact envisioning a re-unification of the country’s various labor federations like they did in 1989 when moderate and militant labor groups marched together to demand a P40 wage increase. The Aquino administration then settled for a P30 across-the-board legislated wage increase following massive workers protest actions nationwide.
But Manuel Roldan, regional director of the Department of Labor and Employment and chair of the RTWPB in Davao, said the board will pursue consultations with workers and employers to guide them in the issuance of a new wage order for the region.
Roldan said that instead of waiting for new wage petitions, he wrote various labor federations and employers to submit their positions on the wage issue.
In reply, the regional office of the Federation of Free Workers (FFF) said they opt for P77 daily wage increase in addition to the existing P180 minimum wage in Southern Mindanao.
But Alfredo Olvida, FFW-Southern Mindanao legal assistant, also noted the increase is not enough for the workers. He said based on computation made by the research group IBON Databank, a family of six living outside Metro Manila needs a P343.18 daily wage.
Smaller labor groups like the Progressive Federation of Labor said in a position paper they are recommending a P30 wage increase while the Federation of Southern Davao Workers opted for a P10 salary adjustment..
The Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII), however, is pushing for a “zero wage increase.”
Bonifacio Tan, former president of the DCCCII, said businesses in the region are barely surviving especially after the world economy slowed down following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington D.C. He said most of the traders in the region rely on earnings from exports in the US. He said since the attacks, their earnings sharply dropped.
Tan also said they will oppose any legislated wage increase, claiming many firms in the country will either close shop or reduce their labor forces if the wage increase is legislated.
Roldan also said the P125 wage increase is too high and will have adverse impact on the region’s economy. He said the level of investments and earning generated by various industries in the region cannot afford a P125 wage increase.
