Baguio Labor Day protest demands wage increase, scrapping of oil tax law
BAGUIO CITY — Progressive groups marched along Session Road and converged at Igorot Park on Labor Day, calling for a regional minimum wage increase and concrete government action to ease the impact of rising prices.
Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) Cordillera spokesperson Mike Cabangon said the situation reflects a widening gap between the rich and the poor, as fuel price hikes continue to drive up the cost of basic goods and services while wages remain low.
He described recent wage adjustments as “insulting” for failing to meet workers’ actual needs.
Cabangon noted that the current P505 daily minimum wage is no longer sufficient amid rising costs of electricity, fuel, and food.
Labor groups, including the No to Oil Price Hike Coalition Baguio-Benguet, KMU Cordillera, and Pinagkaisang Tsuper at Opereytors Nationwide Metro-Baguio, urged the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board to issue a new wage order to provide immediate relief.
Migrante International representative Josie Pinkihan also highlighted the plight of overseas Filipino workers, many of whom continue to face unsafe and uncertain conditions abroad, particularly in the Middle East, due to limited opportunities at home.
Fr. Emmanuel Panayo of the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Baguio and the Regional Ecumenical Council in the Cordillera said church groups stand in solidarity with the public, calling not only for compassion amid the crisis but also for justice and respect for people’s rights.
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The groups criticized what they described as short-term or “band-aid” government responses, instead pushing for the scrapping of the Oil Price Deregulation Law and the suspension, or removal, of excise and value-added taxes on fuel.
PISTON Metro-Baguio also called for a halt to the transport modernization program.
The Labor Day protest drew participation from students, teachers, vendors, jeepney drivers, artists, operators, and members of the religious sector, all pressing for wage hikes, fuel price rollbacks, and immediate economic relief for workers and farmers affected by rising oil costs.
Labor Day traces its roots to the Haymarket Affair, where workers demanding an eight-hour workday faced violent repression. It was later declared International Workers’ Day in 1889 by labor and socialist groups and has since become a global symbol of resistance and solidarity.
Protesters said the commemoration serves as a reminder that while gains have been made, the fight continues for fair wages, better working conditions, and policies that genuinely address the needs of workers. /mcm
