BACOLOD City – The bill proposing a P100 wage increase, which was recently passed in the Senate on its third and final reading, has elicited mixed responses.
Labor groups in Negros Occidental have praised the passage of the bill, while a business group has voiced opposition.
Frank Carbon, executive director of the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI), said if the bill is officially signed into law, many business owners may be forced to lay off workers, potentially leading to an economic downturn.
Carbon also said the proposed wage hike could deter investors from the country.
He further expressed dismay that the Senate had not considered the business sector’s position.
More than 15 groups of businessmen from the city have submitted a manifesto expressing their strong opposition to the wage increase.
The current daily wage in Western Visayas is P480. If the P100 wage increase bill is signed into law, the daily wage in the region will rise to P580.
Epi Gelle, a local progressive group leader and labor rights advocate, welcomed the passage of the bill, noting that it would significantly aid workers. He said such a wage increase should have been implemented long ago and argued that the daily wage for a family of five should ideally exceed P1,000.
Nonetheless, Gelle expressed gratitude to the 20 senators who voted in favor of the bill and expressed hope that the House of Representatives would approve a similar measure.
On Monday, Feb. 19, Senate Bill No. 2534 that called for a P100 increase in the daily minimum wage for workers in the private sector, was approved on its third and final reading.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, a co-sponsor of the bill, remarked that if the measure is signed into law, it could mark the first nationwide legislated pay hike since 1989.
He emphasized the urgent need to raise the minimum wage for workers, especially those in the Visayas and Mindanao, who currently earn only P360 a day. (Watchmen Daily Journal)/PN
