Atin Ito First Filipino Community Newspaper in Ontario
Filipino and foreign business organizations in the country are urging policy makers, particularly the Senate, to adopt a more comprehensive approach to addressing economic inequality instead of focusing solely on legislated wage increases, moves that businesses have always strongly opposed.
This was the main recommendation in a draft position paper by roughly 15 business groups in the country to be submitted to the Senate addressed to Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, who recently enjoined his colleagues to support the passage of Senate Bill No. 2534 or the P100 Daily Minimum Wage Increase Act of 2023.
Zubiri, who co-sponsored the measure, said earlier this month that the bill is a vital step in recognizing the worth of the workers.
“It‘s time to push for the benefits of the labor sector. (They) are the foundation of our society, and they have the right to earn a decent wage, to have a decent life. Let us make this a statement of the Senate, an action of the Senate for our people,” Zubiri said.
Businessmen, however, are pushing for a comprehensive approach to address economic inequality. This includes investing more in education, skills development, and infrastructure, as well as creating an enabling environment for business growth and job creation. It also means passing legislation to once and for all solve low productivity, poor governance, excessive regulations, worsening poverty and serious income inequality which characterize a country with a large informal sector.
In addition, the business community emphasized the importance of fostering constructive dialogue and collaboration among all stakeholders, including employers, employees, and government representatives, to develop policies that promote equitable and sustainable economic growth and shared prosperity for all.
In the draft position paper, the business groups stated, that they stand with the government in upholding the principles of Bagong Pilipinas towards an inclusive, sustainable path to growth.
In this context, the groups said, “we have consistently and strongly opposed attempts to legislate minimum wage increases, a mandate which Congress has long ago provided to the objective judgment of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards.”
Businessmen are reminding the senators that 15 of the 16 of the regional wage boards have just granted another round of increase in minimum wages.
They would rather leave the discussion on wage hikes to the wage boards, which they believe as more objective having been represented by government, labor and employers, with a thorough process of consultations and public hearings.
In contrast, they said legislated wages will hurt especially the micro, small and medium enterprises and worsen the plight of the informal sector, which is estimated at an overwhelming 47-million strong workforce.
Among others, the informal sector consists of agricultural workers with no employers, fisherfolks, unpaid family workers, home-based workers, ambulant vendors and street hawkers, jeepney/tricycle and pedicab drivers, temporary construction workers, small-scale miners and quarry workers.
Other examples are tour guides, “on-call” entertainment workers, and hairdressers, waste pickers and recyclers, barangay health workers, domestic cleaners, and food delivery riders and other gig workers.
They do not stand to benefit whatsoever from any legislated wage increase in the form as it is being discussed right now. In reality, their pockets will be hurt more by the higher inflation rate resulting from the proposed legislated minimum wage increase as unanimously confirmed by the country’s economic and financial managers.
They also reiterated that the beneficiaries of a legislated wage are only the formal sector, which is estimated to reach five million workers only to the prejudice of 47 million others. “The bias against them only rubs salt into the injury they have been suffering from for token or lip service from some government instrumentalities or institutions,” stated the draft position paper.
The groups said they seriously believe that another wage hike through legislation coming at the heels of the recently implemented minimum wage adjustments through the wage boards is “not the appropriate solution to address the underlying challenges faced by our Filipino workers.”
A sudden imposition of a significant national wage hike would place an unprecedented burden on businesses, particularly on the micro and small-sized enterprises consisting of at least 95 percent of enterprises, many of which are still reeling from the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The position paper is still being routed for signature by heads of respective organizations before submission by Friday, Feb. 16 to the Senate.
The business groups include – Employers Confederation of the Philippines, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Philippine Exporters Confederation, Management Association of the Philippines, Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, IT Business Process Association of the Philippines, Makati Business Club, Bankers Association of the Philippines, Philippine Retailers Association, American Chamber of Commerce, European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Semiconductor and Electronics Industries of the Philippines Foundation Inc., Philippine Franchising Association, People Management Association of the Philippines, Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines, Philippine Constructors Association Inc., Philippine Association of Legitimate Service Contractors, Philippine Hotel Owners Association, PHILFOODEX Inc., and PACU.
— Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat
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Credit belongs to: www.mb.com.ph
