No wage hike for workers in Southern Mindanao

DAVAO CITY—Workers in Southern Mindanao hoping to receive a wage increase in time for Labor Day are in for a disappointment.

No wage increase looms in the region though workers are to receive a P10 additional cost of living allowance (Cola) that was part of the P15 Cola increase that the region’s wage board approved in December last year.

Joffrey Suyao, regional labor director, said the release of the remaining Cola would effectively increase wages in the nonagriculture sector to P310 per day from the previous P291.

Those working in the agriculture sector will get P291 from the previous P281 and those in the retail sector employing not more than 10 workers would receive minimum daily pay of P270 by May 1, he said.

Suyao said despite the rise in cost of commodities, the labor department could not increase wages in the provinces of Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, Compostela Valley and cities in Southern Mindanao because it is bound by a law that prohibits a new wage increase within a year after the last increase in wages.

Only supervening conditions, whose definition is not clear, could prompt a new wage increase within a year of the last wage increase.

Suyao said supervening condition could come into play if the increase in oil prices showed no signs of easing.

Suyao said the labor department would have no way to monitor all establishments for compliance with the additional P10 Cola.

Not many workers are complaining, though, he said.

The labor department, he said, is also trying to find alternative sources of income for workers. Judy Quiros and Ayan Mellejor, Inquirer Mindanao