Palace rules out unilateral wage hike

Malacañang yesterday assured no unilateral wage hikes in Metro Manila and elsewhere in the country.

“There’s a process involved in bringing forth wage hikes,” said Communications Group official Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma.

He noted such process involves consultations among parties concerned so each can air issues on proposals to hike wages.

Airing such issues will help parties concerned identify the best possible course of action on wage hike proposals.

Such assurance came amid reports Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) expressed concern about calls for raising anew wages in Metro Manila at present.

Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz clarified tripartite wage boards, not Malacañang, act on proposals to raise salaries in regions nationwide including Metro Manila.

Representatives of employers, employees and government sit in these wage boards.

“ECOP has representatives in such boards,” Baldoz noted.

She believes a new round of salary increase is unlikely for Metro Manila at this time, saying such region’s wage board just finished setting a P22 pay hike for workers there.

Implementation of this increase commenced before the new administration began last month its work in government, she noted.

Baldoz said wage boards in other regions also already set the latest round of respective wage hikes.

She noted only four wage boards continue looking into the proposed latest round of salary increases in regions where these have jurisdiction.

“It’s up to such boards to say if there’ll be wage hikes in those regions,” she said. PNA