By DELIA BAGNI
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Anakpawis-Cordillera reiterated that the P8 wage hike the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-Department of Labor and Employment-Cordillera Administrative Region (RTWPB-DOLE-CAR) boasts of is a far cry from the actual amount workers need to afford a decent standard of living.

Anakpawis-Cordillera Coordinator Michael Cabangon said that the P8 wage increase which took effect on June 18 of this year is not enough to support the daily needed amount of a Filipino family. He added that based on the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) computations, a family of six needs atleast P16,800 a month. He said that present average monthly salary of wage earners in the region is pegged at P6,800 to P7,000 which is not even half of the NEDA projected monthly expenses.

Cabangon said that the workers who are receiving P6,800-P7,000 barely live a decent life. He also said that some workers are even suffering from non-compliance of some employers to the minimum wage. He reiterated that DOLE should ensure that the minimum wage be strictly implemented in the entire region. He cited workers in the Mt. Province are only receiving P168-P170 away from the P263 for the non-agricultural sector while P246 for the agricultural sector.

According to Cabangon, the workers need a livable wage where it can cover the needs of their families. He said that they are still longing for a genuine wage increase. He added that they are calling for the passage of a legislated P125 wage hike that according to him is actually long overdue. He added that this wage increase demand started as early as the late 1990’s.

This is in contrast with the pronouncements of RTWPB-DOLE-CAR Chairman Henry S. Jalbuena that the latest wage hike order in the region envisions a highly productive and justly compensated Filipino workforce and to ensure a decent standard of living for workers and to improve their productivity.

Jalbuena during the the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) Cordillera orientation said that under the wage order, a new policy called Two-Tiered Wage System or an approach to improve the coverage of wages is implemented.

The system, he explianed, consists two parts; first is the mandatory implementation and second is voluntary designed to allow employers and workers to improve their terms and conditions on labor productivity and business performances with out the presence of legal attorneys but with the presence of an official or representative from DOLE. # nordis.net