West Visayas workers seek P100 wage hike

DRY PUMP Several pumps in a gasoline station in Tagbilaran City, the provincial capital of Bohol, run out of diesel on Tuesday as vehicle owners start filling their tanks on Monday night, ahead of the big-time fuel price increase this week. —LEO UDTOHAN

BACOLOD CITY, Negros Occidental, Philippines — Workers in Western Visayas are feeling the pinch amid the rising prices of basic goods and fuel, prompting them to seek a wage increase.

Wennie Sancho, labor representative to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB), said the extraordinary increases in the prices of petroleum products as well as other goods and services constitute a “supervening condition” that would allow the board to initiate the process of minimum wage fixing even without a formal wage petition from the labor sector.

In a March 7 letter to Sixto Rodriguez, the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) regional director, Sancho said the labor sector in Western Visayas was considering filing a consolidated petition for a P100 daily wage increase.

The RTWPB granted an increase of P15 to P30 in the daily minimum wage in the region in 2019. The current minimum wage rate in Western Visayas is P310 to P395, depending on the industry classification.

Sancho asked Rodriguez to tackle the “workers’ manifesto” in the next regular meeting of the wage board.

The manifesto, an official statement of workers calling for adequate compensation and a decent standard of living, pointed out that there was no wage increase in 2020 and 2021.

“It is imperative that a wage increase of P95 to P100 per day be given to Western Visayas workers,” it said. “No amount of rhetoric from our government economists and statisticians could convince the labor sector that our economy is on the road to recovery.”

APPEAL | Tricycle drivers in Tagbilaran City say the government must consider adjusting fare rates as prices of fuel skyrocket. In Western Visayas, workers are seeking a wage increase so they can cope with the high cost of basic goods. (LEO UDTOHAN / INQUIRER VISAYAS)

Fuel supply

The RTWPB, the manifesto said, would be remiss in its duty if it ignored the “urgent call” of workers for a wage increase.In Bohol province, many gasoline stations in the capital city of Tagbilaran have run out of diesel supply as a steep increase in fuel prices took effect on Tuesday.

Gilbert Castaño, supervisor of Petron gasoline station in Barangay Cogon, said they ran out of diesel on Monday night. The station’s diesel stock of 6,000 liters had been sold out ahead of the big-time oil price hike.

The price of diesel was P57.65 per liter on Monday but it rose to P63.50 per liter on Tuesday. Gasoline was sold at P68 per liter from P64.40 liter.

Drivers were dismayed about the abrupt increase in fuel prices.

“I have no choice but to deal with the problem,” tricycle driver Mico Bucia said.

Budget cuts

Bucia earns less than P500 a day during the pandemic compared to the P800 to P1,000 he was taking home daily prior to the pandemic.He said the continuous increase in fuel prices must also lead to an increase in transport fares.The minimum tricycle fare in Tagbilaran City is P10. However, many passengers have complained that tricycle drivers were already charging higher fares, at P15 to P30.

Expensive fuel prices were also forcing people to reconsider their household budgets.

Housewife Arlene Pisquera, 46, said she needed to buy only essentials for her family.

“If I don’t have any concerns in the city, I just stay at home,” said Pisquera, who lives in Dauis town.

When her husband, Cesar, goes to work in the city, she just asks him to buy only essential household items.Eddie Casquejo, a construction worker in Cebu City, was thinking of using a bicycle in going to work to save money.

Huge burden

The 53-year-old Casquejo said the increasing prices of fuel, food and other basic goods would be a huge burden for his family.

“I will limit the use of my motorcycle since the places I go are near. I may have to shift to riding a bicycle which will not cost anything,” he said in Cebuano.

Food delivery rider Archie Aclao said he might ditch his motorcycle for a more fuel-efficient unit to save on gas money.

Aclao is also cutting down on his budget for meals so he could save more.

“I will just eat less because my budget is not enough, especially with fewer bookings. I will eat less and cut costs a little. I will just find ways to be resourceful for my family,” he said.

—REPORTS FROM CARLA GOMEZ, LEO UDTOHAN AND DALE ISRAEL

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