Abolition of wage boards sought
AN OPPOSITION lawmaker on Thursday called for the abolition of regional wage boards, citing their alleged failure to rule in favor of workers instead of employers.
“Workers in different regions throughout the country have long earned a minimum wage way below what we call a living wage, that’s why we need to abolish these regional wage boards” Deputy Minority Leader and Party-list Rep. France L. Castro told a news briefing in Filipino.
The National Wages and Productivity Commission, which supervises regional wage boards, did not immediately reply to an e-mail seeking comment.
The House of Representatives labor committee should also hear bills seeking a P150 to P750 across-the-board wage hike before Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr.’s state of the nation address on July 22, she said.
The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board last month approved a P35 minimum wage hike to P645 for workers in the National Capital Region (NCR), which will take effect on July 17.
A bill that seeks to do away with regional wage boards is pending at the House labor committee. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio