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SONA 2023: Workers want Marcos to address low wages, protect rights

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Zen Hernandez, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt=" Workers unload sacks of rice at a public market in Makati City on May 31, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2022/tvpatrol/06/03/20220531-economy-inflation-gc-12.jpg"/><figcaption>Workers unload sacks of rice at a public market in Makati City on May 31, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA -- After leaving her job as a security guard and filing a labor case against her agency, Rochell Papa is barely able to make ends meet with whatever is left of her last paycheck.She doesn’t regret fighting for her rights because aside from not receiving legally mandated benefits, her wages were also below minimum and constantly delayed.But she has a 5 year old daughter to feed and she needs to find a new job quick. However, her past experience in job hunting is far from encouraging, as she failed to land office work positions despite being a college degree holder.“Sana sa mga company…may tinapos ka naman, bibigyan sana nila ng chance man lang di ba? Hindi yung porke’t wala kang experience di ka na tatanggapin…Willing naman akong mag-training,” she complained.(I hope companies will give a chance to those with educational attainment, instead of rejecting right away for lack of experience. I am willing to undergo training.)Despite improving numbers in unemployment, there are still problems with the quality of jobs in the country.<div>DATA</div>According to the May 2023 Labor Force Survey from the Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA) the number of jobless Filipinos went down to 2.17 million from 2.93 million during the same month last year.Underemployment also eased, with over 1 million less Filipinos looking for additional work hours and income.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/06/09/23/unemployment-dips-in-april-but-underemployment-rises">Unemployment dips in April, but underemployment rises</a></li></ul>But a deeper dive into the classification of workers would also show that the number of workers in private establishments, along with the self-employed and wage and salary workers dropped. In contrast, unpaid family workers and household workers showed a clear uptrend.The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) agrees there is a need to generate quality employment that would provide better pay, better conditions and more security for Filipino workers and their families - and this is what the Labor and Employment Plan hopes to achieve until the end of the Marcos administration’s term in 2028.According to DOLE, the Labor and Employment Plan is the result of consultations with labor and management, and is currently awaiting approval from the cabinet.The plan lists industries like agriculture, manufacturing, tourism and technology as those expected to play a key role in the delivery of sustainable jobs for Filipinos.“Whole, remunerative, productive and then sustainable na hanapbuhay…that’s where the President really wants to see more investments…I’d also like to more or less see the situation, wherein a family of five, where there are 2 or 3 na pwede magtrabaho, sana lahat sila may trabaho, so that we stop talking about minimum eh. We are now talking about…‘living wage,’” Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said.Based on 2021 data from the PSA, a family of 5 needs at least P12,030 a month to be able to afford basic food and non-food items.But research and advocacy group IBON Foundation says, this is far from what is considered a “Family Living Wage” (FLW). Based on their calculations in May 2023, a family of 5 in NCR needs P1,160 a day or P25,239 monthly, in order to live decently. If this is to be used as basis, then NCR’s new daily minimum wage of P610 is still not enough.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/05/09/23/filipinos-feel-poor-due-to-low-pay-lack-of-jobs-think-tank">Filipinos feel poor due to low pay, lack of jobs: think tank</a></li></ul>Currently, several minimum wage hike petitions are pending before regional wage boards. A proposed P150 national minimum wage increase has been also proposed in both Houses of Congress.<div>EMPLOYERS</div>However, employers argued that the “living wage” is not dependent on minimum wage alone, but rather on a number of factors, including intervention from the government.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/business/07/01/23/labor-groups-dissatisfied-with-p40-daily-wage-hike">Labor groups dissatisfied with P40 daily wage hike</a></li></ul>The Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) has also pointed out that only a <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/05/10/23/employers-group-pushes-benefits-as-calls-wage-hike-mount">small fraction</a> of the country&#x27;s total workforce will benefit from a minimum wage increase.ECOP President Sergio Ortiz Luis said only those in the formal sector could benefit from this, which make up only 16 percent of the workforce. The remaining 84 percent, he said, would be at a disadvantage. Instead, the group recommends improving investment climate and lowering inflation rate - and for ECOP, the Marcos administration’s performance on these 2 fronts has been satisfactory. Philippine inflation has also slowed down to 5.4 percent this June, from a high of 8.7 percent in January.President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. has gone on 13 foreign trips to woo investors in his first year. “The only answer for quality jobs and jobs is investments. We have to have investments and that’s why we appreciate the government’s efforts. Wag lang papasok yang unnecessary na wages na yan na tataas na bigla na lang tamang-tama ang andar mo madididiskaril. Eh hopefully next year 2 to 4 percent na lang inflation eh,” ECOP President Sergio Ortiz Luis said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/17/23/hontiveros-backs-zubiris-wage-hike-bill-appeals-for-sogie-bill-hearing">Hontiveros backs Zubiri&#x27;s P150 wage hike bill, appeals for SOGIE bill hearing</a></li></ul>But Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) maintained that investments can flourish without having to sacrifice workers’ rights to just wages and a decent life. They also said that the backbone of every economy is labor and that the measure of the government’s performance is whether people’s lives have actually changed for the better. For KMU - it has not, which is reason to give the Marcos administration a failing mark.“One year na, ang tingin namin may enough time na dapat, at least may nakita man lang sana kaming improvement. Parang one year na nagi-start pa lang tayo sa scratch. Sabihin natin hindi mo pa kayang ibigay yung nakabubuhay na sahod, step by step ito yung kaya kong i-offer sa inyo, price control di ba? Hindi lang ang worker ang makikinabang kundi buong bayan,” said Jerome Adonis, KMU Secretary General.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/06/30/23/p40-ncr-wage-hike-tinawag-na-pambabarat-ng-labor-group">P40 NCR wage hike tinawag na &#x27;pambabarat&#x27; ng labor group</a></li></ul>The Federation of Free Workers (FFW) meanwhile would like to give the government a chance. They are party to the drafting of the DOLE’s Labor and Employment Plan and are hoping to see results very soon.“Napaka-importante po yung pagtaas ng sahod syempre. At saka yung pag-address ng precarious work arrangement tulad ng mga contractualization, yung endo…at yung pangatlo, syempre, yung karapatan ng mga manggagawa, lalong-lalo na sa pagtatayo ng mga unyon,” said Sonny Matula, FFW president.But despite differing opinions about the government’s performance, one thing is for sure - both labor and management sectors will tune in to the President’s second State of the Nation Address (SONA), and both expect the President to lay down concrete solutions that would address urgent issues affecting investment, jobs generation and the quality of jobs in the country.

According to DOLE, the Labor and Employment Plan is the result of consultations with labor and management.

SONA 2023: Workers want Marcos to address low wages, protect rights

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SONA 2023: Workers want Marcos to address low wages, protect rights

Zen Hernandez,

ABS-CBN News

Published July 21, 2023 05:44 PM PHT

Read More:

SONA

SONA 2023

Marcos 2nd SONA

State of the Nation Address

labor

employment

DOLE

wage

wages

wage hike

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