Ilocos, W. Visayas wage boards approve pay hikes

By Chloe Mari A. Hufana, Reporter

REGIONAL WAGE BOARDS in Ilocos and the Western Visayas approved minimum wage increases, Labor Secretary Bienvenido E. Laguesma said on Thursday.

The National Wages and Productivity Commission approved pay hikes for Region I (Ilocos) and Region VI (Western Visayas) on Wednesday. Both will take effect in November, Mr. Laguesma said via Viber.

In the Ilocos Region, non-agricultural workers employed in firms with at least 10 employees will get a P37 increase, bringing their minimum daily wage to P505.

Non-agricultural workers with firms of less than 10 employees and agricultural workers will receive a P45 hike, bringing their minimum daily pay to P480.

Meanwhile, Western Visayas workers in non-agricultural, industrial, and commercial employment with firms of more than 10 workers will receive a P37 increase, raising their daily minimum wage to P550.

For establishments with fewer than 10 employees, the daily minimum wage will rise by P45 to P530 from P485.

For agricultural jobs, a P40 adjustment will bring the daily minimum wage to P520.

The new wage rates for Region VI take effect on Nov. 19, 2025.

According to Mr. Laguesma, at least four more regions will release new wage orders to adjust minimum daily pay.

These regional boards are due to conduct public hearings next month, with the corresponding wage orders expected by December, he added.

These regions are the Cordillera Administrative Region, Mimaropa, the Eastern Visayas and the Zamboanga Peninsula.

Minimum wages adjustments for workers in Region IV-A (Calabarzon) also took effect on Thursday under Wage Order No. IV-A22.

The regional board earlier approved a P25 to P100 daily minimum wage increase.

The daily minimum pay was raised to P600 for non-agricultural workers, P525 for agriculture, and P508 for retail and service establishments with 10 or fewer employees.

Headline inflation rose to a six-month high of 1.7% in September from 1.5% in August, driven mainly by higher fuel and vegetable prices, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported earlier this month.

Inflation remained within the 2-4% target range set by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas target range. The latest reading remained below the year-earlier level of 1.9%.

Core inflation — which strips out volatile food and fuel prices — eased to 2.6% in September from 2.7% in August, though it remained higher than the 2.4% year-earlier level.

In the first nine months of 2025, core inflation averaged 2.4%, down from the 3.1% booked a year earlier.

The Federation of Free Workers (FFW) said the wage hike in the Western Visayas was helpful but insufficient to meet workers’ basic needs.

FFW Women Network President Ma. Victoria G. Bellosillo said disparities in regional wages create uneven relief.

FFW continues to support a national living wage and a P200 across-the-board wage hike.

“An increase in wages is a help, but not yet justice. The true goal is a salary sufficient for decent living,” she said in a statement.

The Philippines adjusts wages through regional boards, but labor groups support a legislated wage hike that would standardize pay across the country and ensure a living wage.

Labor leaders argue that regional wage-setting often leaves workers in poorer provinces behind, while the cost of basic goods continues to rise nationwide.