Business leaders nix legislated wage hike

MANILA, Philippines  —The country’s largest business organization on Wednesday called on lawmakers to let the wage boards decide on wage adjustments, marking the latest appeal to discontinue the legislation of a P100 daily minimum wage hike.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) said that Congress should let the National Wages and Productivity Commission and the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board handle the issue instead of making a new law, which the group said would only benefit a few.

“The P100 proposed wage will not even be enough when inflation goes up. Why don’t we instead legislate measures to address the rising cost of food prices and other issues that hamper our economic growth?” PCCI president Enunina Mangio said in a statement.

“No one would ever try to look at the Philippines once they see that legislators can enact wage hikes anytime, even disregarding the authority of the National Wage Board,” said Mangio.

READ: DOLE gearing up for proposed P100 daily wage hike

The PCCI official said that the Senators pushing for the wage hike had not considered the side of employers and the business community.

The business group, through its Visayas chapter in particular, recommended several alternative measures. These include expanding economic activities and attracting investments to complement labor and local productivity.

Inflationary pressures

“By attracting both foreign and local direct investments, we can generate more job opportunities and stimulate economic growth that is inclusive,” said PCCI Visayas.

The organization also recommended that the government proactively address inflationary pressures—particular on basic goods and services, utility costs such as power and water and fuel prices.

READ: Employers: A catastrophe to grant P100 wage hike

PCCI said further that it was crucial to boost the agricultural value chain and develop new agri-aqua technologies to improve productivity and reduce dependency on imports.

Lastly, it said that lawmakers should pass laws that provide safety nets to protect workers from exploitation and ensure fair wages.

A day earlier, the public advocacy organization Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) said that the wage hike would turbocharge inflation and push companies to raise prices.

“Increased inflation will force the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to hike interest rates, which will raise the cost of housing, cars and appliances, which are mostly bought on credit. Increased interest rates will force companies to reduce investments and cut back on employment,” the group said.

FEF added this would force many small and medium-sized enterprises to either close shop and lay off workers, as well as cause suffering to nonminimum wage workers who will not benefit from a wage hike but will be hit by rising consumer prices.