A WORKERS’ ASSOCIATION representing business process outsourcing (BPO) employees filed a petition on Wednesday seeking a P1,200 minimum wage for the National Capital Region (NCR).
The BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN) said it submitted its request to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board–NCR office in Pasay City.
“The continuous increase in oil prices, which has triggered a domino effect resulting in higher costs of basic goods and services, including increased rates in electricity, water, and LPG, thereby significantly burdening the workers,” the group said in its filing.
It cited the need to “grant a wage increase (that preserves) the workers’ standard of living and enable them to cope with the continuously rising cost of living.”
The current NCR minimum wage stands at P695 per day, following a P50 increase that took effect in July 2025.
BIEN said the purchasing power of the peso was the equivalent of P0.75 in March, reflecting a decline in wages’ ability to cover basic needs. Inflation was 4.1% that month, driving up the cost of essentials such as electricity and water.
IBON Foundation estimates that a family of five in NCR needs a living wage of P1,266 per day to meet basic and social needs.
The filing also cited the state of national energy emergency declared by President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. in March after the start of the Middle East conflict.
BIEN said the BPO industry employs 1.9 million workers and generated $40 billion in revenue in 2025. A February survey by the group found that 20% of workers earn basic monthly salaries of P15,000 to P17,000.
NCR wage board chairperson Sarah Buena S. Mirasol told BusinessWorld on Tuesday that consultations with labor and employer groups will begin in May to assess at least 16 wage hike petitions, ahead of a public hearing scheduled for June.
She added that one petition seeks a P200 daily increase, with current economic conditions and the Middle East conflict driving the requests. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking
