MANILA, Philippines — The daily take-home pay of minimum wage earners in Zamboanga peninsula will increase by P35.
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)-Information and Publication Service director Rolly Francia said workers in the non-agriculture sector would receive the pay hike upon the effectivity of the wage order.
Agricultural workers, on the other hand, will get an initial P20 and the remaining P15 on Oct. 22.
The wage order was affirmed by the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) on June 7 and will take effect starting June 25, DOLE regional director and Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) chairman Roy Buenafe announced yesterday.
“Finally, the long wait is over. The decision to increase minimum wages in ZamPen has been hard fought considering the impact of the pandemic on the regional economy,” he told a press briefing.
Labor groups initially sought an increase of P210 in their daily pay.
“We are looking at and balancing the needs of our labor sector here since we are facing the increased prices of commodities. And of course, we have also to consider the plight of the employers, especially those in the MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises), if they still have the capacity to grant the increase,” Buenafe said.
The current take-home pay of minimum wage earners in Zamboanga peninsula is P315.
With the increase, retail and service workers in establishments with 10 to 30 employees will receive P338 per day.
The RTWPB also approved an increase in the minimum monthly salary of domestic workers or house helpers by P500, bringing it to P4,000 in chartered cities and first class municipalities and P3,500 in other areas.
The NWPC affirmed the wage order on June 7.
Buenafe said the wage hike would benefit 269,767 workers in private establishments and 18,984 domestic workers in the region.
Only the Eastern Visayas RTWPB has yet to issue a new wage order.
The DOLE had earlier said the wage boards in 14 regions had approved salary increases, which minimum wage earners will receive before the end of the month. - Roel Pareño