Agri workers among lowest paid – NSO

MANILA, Philippines - Workers in the agriculture sector are among the lowest paid in the country, the National Statistical Coordination Board said, making poverty widespread in the industry as it employs a third of the labor force.

“Agriculture receives the lowest average daily basic wage and salary compared to non-agriculture sectors,” NSCB secretary general Jose Ramon G. Albert said in the latest issue of Beyond the Numbers.

“Farmers and fishermen are among the least paid workers in the Philippine economy with an average daily wage and salary of P156.8 and P178.43, respectively in 2011,” he said, noting their salaries are only higher than domestic helpers.

Given that the agriculture sector employs more than a third of the country’s labor force, Albert stressed the high incidence rate of poverty in the sector comes as no surprise.

Albert said poverty incidence among fishermen and farmers were at 41.4 percent and 36.7 percent, respectively, in 2009, above the whole country’s 26.5 percent.

But despite the grim situation of laborers in the agriculture sector, Albert pointed out “it is important to recognize that government has a number of policies and programs toward uplifting the lives of the Filipino farmers and fishermen.”

Albert noted the budget for the Department of Agriculture, while low compared to other agencies, has been increasing in the past three years to 2013.

Moreover, the government has improved credit access for the sector through the Agricultural Credit Policy Council, and also started to compile information on farmers, fishermen and farm laborers, to be used for distribution of subsidies and benefits.

“Whether the current efforts of government will be successful, only time will truly tell. Many efforts have not yielded fruit, but perhaps, it is time also for everyone to recognize that we can’t leave everything to government,” Albert said.

“If we wish the agriculture sector to grow in importance, then we all have to do our share in helping farmers, in reducing transportation costs, and reducing the profits of middle-men,” he continued.