THE Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) filed a petition with the National Capital Region (NCR) Regional Wages and Productivity Board for a P320 across-the-board wage increase for workers in the private sector.
TUCP said in a statement that “a regional across-the-board wage increase of P320 is now needed in NCR because the existing P512 daily minimum wage is not enough for a household with at least five members to survive and live a decent life.”
The petition is in line with the House Bill 7805, which was filed by TUCP party-list Representative Raymond C. Mendoza. House Bill 7805 called for a P320 wage increase in all regions.
This would make the current NCR daily wage P832.
TUCP Vice-President Manuel C. Corral said that “P832 is still far from a decent daily wage but we will still appreciate if the wage board will grant our present petition,” referring to a statement made by National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia saying that a family of five needs at least P42,000 a month to survive. Mr. Corral added that P42,000, “is roughly equivalent to a P1,400 daily income.”
The proposed P832 wage per day is still viewed a “survival wage” by TUCP in light of the rising cost of living in Metro Manila. TUCP is also calling for all wage boards nationwide to raise the minimum wage by at least P320.
“We are doing this as our duty to our workers and their families who are mostly in dire economic and financial conditions,” said TUCP Spokesperson Vicente C. Camilon, Jr. — Gillian M. Cortez

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