Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri has urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to certify the legislated P100 wage hike as urgent.
He made the call following the President’s directive for the regional wage boards to review the wage rates according to the inflation in their areas.
“I am one with our President in calling for the Regional Tripartite Wage and Productivity Boards to do a regular review of our minimum wages and for the National Wages and Productivity Commission to ensure that the boards do so,” Zubiri said on Thursday (May 2 ).
“In tandem with this, I also urgently appeal to our President to consider Senate Bill No. 2534, or the P100 Daily Minimum Wage Increase Act, which will be a massive step towards giving our hardworking laborers the living wages that they deserve. Perhaps it can even be certified as urgent, given the continued spike in the prices of goods owing to inflation,” he added.
During his Labor Day message, President Marcos stressed the need for Congress to pass pro-labor laws, but he did not name the P100 wage hike bill that the Senate passed pending action at the House of Representatives.
A President’s certification as urgent of the bill would fast track its passage at the House, according to Zubiri, the principal author of the measure in the Senate.
“All we need is the House counterpart measure, and this will be immediately felt across the sector,” Zubiri said.
The Senate President vouched for the P100 daily minimum wage increase for agricultural and non-agricultural workers in the private sector so that workers’ take-home pay can keep up with the rising inflation.
“Our workers, despite making massive contributions to our industries, are still dealing with wages that are not enough to cover their needs,” Zubiri said.
“This bill will only give a boost to the labor sector at this time of great need, as our people work to survive inflation,” he added.
