Unified minimum wage: Boost or bust?

A few days ago, the House of Representatives’ committee on labor and employment “approved the bills seeking to create a national minimum wage and effectively abolishing the current system of varying provincial wages.”

- Fidel O. Abalos

This is nothing new though. About five months ago, a similar bill (House Bill 2599) was also filed by the Makabayan bloc in a “bid to pass the proposed National Minimum Wage Act” calling for a national minimum wage of P1,200.00 and the abolition of the regional wage boards. To recall, over seven (7) years ago there was a similar bill too filed by the bloc for P750.00.

Demand for exorbitant wage increase may sound absurd but it sells well to the labor unions’ members. Coupled with the proposal to set a national minimum wage, the workers in the countryside will even be more gratified. This is so as the minimum wage in Metro Manila shall be the same as that in the Province of Sulu. The House’s committee did not disclose though the proposed initial minimum wage upon implementation. However, for purposes of discussion, we may use the minimum wage proposed by the Makabayan bloc earlier this year.

Simply put, should we consider the proposed P1,200, a worker in Sulu who now receives P386 stands to receive an increase in daily pay amounting to P814 and that in Metro Manila who now receives P695 will get a pay raise of P695. Such move though encourages the “probinsyanos” in Metro Manila to go back to the rural areas.