Workers in regions press for pay hike

The country’s largest federation of labor unions is seeking wage hikes ranging from P50 to P93 for workers in eight regions nationwide.

Meanwhile, Labor and Employment Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas told reporters yesterday the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board may grant on Wednesday a wage hike for Metro Manila workers.

Earlier, the Labor Solidarity Movement (LSM) asked the wage board for a P77 hike in the daily minimum wage in the metropolis.

Alex Aguilar, LSM spokesman, told reporters yesterday they have filed wage hike petitions before the wage boards in Central Visayas, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog and Western Visayas.

Aguilar said workers in Central Visayas want a P93 adjustment to the P208 daily minimum wage, while those in Central Luzon are asking for an additional P69.50 to their take home pay of P208.50.

Workers in Southern Tagalog are seeking a P71.50 hike in the P217 minimum wage rate and P50 for those in Western Visayas, he added.

Aguilar said LSM will also file today wage hike petitions for workers in Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, and Central and Southern Mindanao.

Meanwhile, Labor and Employment Assistant Secretary Reydeluz Conferido said yesterday the employment rate could go up from a low 2.64 percent to a high 3.02 percent or between 726,000 and 830,000 new jobs.

Conferido said the agricultural sector is expected to create a minimum of 130,000 to as high as 168,000 new jobs before yearend.

The industry sector is also expected to employ an additional 50,000 to 60,000 workers, while the services sector may grow by 4.7 percent or 603,000 new jobs, he added.

Conferido said the number of overseas Filipino workers could also reach 842,327, which is slightly higher than last year’s total deployment of 841,628.

New deployment is also expected in Norway, the Netherlands, the United States, and Canada, apart from new projects in Hong Kong and South Korea, he added.

Conferido said the unemployment rate will remain double-digit by yearend but it is expected to drop to 11 percent or to as low as 10.73 percent from the second quarter’s 13.3 percent level.

The Department of Labor and Employment is implementing four major employment-promotion strategies intended to benefit Filipino workers in the informal and formal sectors, he added.