#InquirerSeven: Lowest-paying jobs in PH

Filipinos are knowledgeable about the highest-paying jobs in the Philippines, thanks to a recent survey of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). However, as the world celebrates Labor Day, it also pays to know what are the lowest-paying jobs.

Filipinos who provide for our basic needs and necessities are employed in some of the lowest-paying jobs in the country. They are the ones who give us clothes to wear, a home to live in, and food to eat.

In contrast, pilots and engineers are the top earners, raking in at least P150,000 a month.

READ: Labor department issues list of top 10 paying jobs

DOLE mandates that minimum wage workers in Metro Manila earn P491 if they work in sectors unrelated to agriculture and P454, if employed in the agriculture sector. Those included on this list, however, all earn below minimum wage.

This list is based on surveys conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority in 2014.

1. Forestry workers: P6,290 monthly

Forestry workers, according to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, handle the creation, management, conservation and repair of the forest and related environmental resources. The job includes the assessment of new and rehabilitated areas.

2. Aqua-farm cultivators: P7,088 monthly

Aqua-farm cultivators are responsible for the breeding of fish like “tilapia,” “bangus” and other aquatic stock. Monitoring the ocean and seas to maintain optimal growing conditions is also part of the job.

3. Freight handlers: P7,620 monthly

Freight handlers are responsible for the loading and unloading goods from cargo trucks, containers and trains, ships, planes and storage facilities.

4. Tailors, dressmakers and hatters: P7,818 monthly

In terms of manufacture of wearing apparel industry, for the clothes, hats and other fabric materials, those people behind people’s clothing needs are not getting enough salary. Those are the tailors, dressmakers and hatters.

5. Field crop farmworkers: P7,949 monthly

While rice is a stable in every Filipino meal, the workers who produce it are among the poorest in the country. Field crop farmworkers, as the PSA officially classifies them, are the one who manually plant, cultivate and harvests fruits vegetables and crops for human consumption.

6. Miners and quarry workers: P8,045 monthly

Miners and quarry workers extract stones and minerals such as marble, granite, clay and gravel for construction purposes, as described in the DOLE industry career guide.

7. Wood-processing plant operators: P8,074

Wood-processing plant operators round out the seven lowest-paying jobs in the Philippines. Their job includes the manufacturing of wood products, excluding furniture. Among workers in various plants across industries, those working with wood earn the lowest wages, according to the DOLE./rga