LESS than a full year after a minimum wage hike was enacted in January in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has approved for implementation another minimum wage hike in the region and a few others across the country.
The DOLE said the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) approved the wage order submitted by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) of the CAR, Bicol, and Eastern Visayas which provides for a PHP30 wage increase.
A total of 150,484 registered minimum wage earners in these regions are expected to benefit from the November wage hike in those regions.
November 6 saw CAR’s RTWPB issue of its own volition Wage Order No. CAR-22 which increased the new daily minimum wage rate in the region from P400 to P430.
The board said that this increase shall apply to all minimum wage earners in the private sector within the region, regardless of position, designation, status, and method by which their wages are paid.
As for household workers, the CAR wage board also issued unprompted Wage Order No. RB-CAR-DW-05, increasing their monthly minimum wage by PHP400, bringing their monthly salary to P4,900.
The wage orders will be published on 19 November 2023 and shall take effect after 15 days or on 05 December 2023.
The increases, which considered the various wage determination criteria provided under Republic Act No. 6727 or the Wage Rationalization Act, either resulted from the motu proprio act of the board or petitions filed by labor groups seeking an increase in the daily minimum wage due to escalating prices of basic goods and commodities. Each board, composed of representatives from the government, management, and labor sectors, conducted public hearings and wage deliberations.
The RTWPBs of Bicol and Eastern Visayas also issued similar increases to household and domestic workers’ wages.
The DOLE projects that of around 162,970 registered domestic workers in the regions – about 21 percent (34,111) are on live-in arrangements and will benefit from the pay increase.
As in any wage order, and as provided for in the NWPC Omnibus Rules on Minimum Wage Determination, retail/service establishments regularly employing not more than ten (10) workers, and enterprises affected by natural calamities and/or human-induced disasters may apply to the RTWPB for exemption from the wage increase. Barangay Micro Business Enterprises (BMBEs) are not covered by the minimum wage law pursuant to Republic Act No. 9178 [2002].
