P1,500 basic pay hike for Metro Manila house helpers seen

MANILA, Philippines — Household service workers in Metro Manila may get an early Christmas gift as a P1,500-wage increase is set to be approved by the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) in the coming days.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III on Tuesday said the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) recently approved the new minimum wage of P5,000 for domestic workers in the National Capital Region.

The raise will be enforced once approved by the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC), he said.

Despite the increase, Bello was dismayed that the amount was “way below” what he had wanted for domestic workers.

“I impliedly suggested that it would be good for Metro Manila that we peg the minimum wage at P6,000. If you are able to hire a domestic help, then you can pay P6,000. But, of course, we can’t dictate on our RTWPB,” he told reporters.

When Republic Act No. 10361, or the Domestic Workers Act, was approved in 2013, it set a minimum wage of P2,500 for Metro Manila. In 2017, the RTWPB raised it for the first time by P1,000 to P3,500.