MANILA, Philippines – Garment exporters are supporting the two-tier wage system being pushed by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
“CONGEP (Confederation of Garment Exporters of the Philippines) is agreeable to the two-tier wage system that the DOLE is promoting,” CONGEP executive director Marites Agoncillo was quoted as saying in a statement from the Philippine Exporters Confederation, Inc.
The two-tier wage system combines a fixed floor wage or entry-level wage for new entrants and low-skilled workers, and a flexible wage above the floor based on worker productivity and industry or enterprise performance, which may be negotiated between the employer and the workers.
CONGEP is in discussions with the Labor department on possible wage flexibilities.
Agoncillo said if a flexible wage system is put in place, about 3,000 individuals are guaranteed of employment in the sector.
Agoncillo said labor is an important consideration in deciding whether to make additional investments as it accounts for the biggest component in the cost of manufacturing garments.
Apart from labor cost, garment exporters are also concerned with the high power cost and smuggling.
Data from the National Statistics Office (NSO) showed that outbound shipments of garments were valued at $1.573 billion last year, 17.03 percent lower than in 2011.
Textile exports also went down by 7.26 percent year-on-year to $170.362 million in 2012 from a year ago.
As of end-February, earnings from garment shipments fell by 22.96 percent to $244.522 million from a year ago, while revenues from textile exports reached $27.406 million, 4.01 percent lower than in the previous year.
To improve its export performance, the garments industry is pushing for the passage of the Save Our Industries Act, a measure which will allow the duty-free entry of Philippine-made apparel using American fabrics to the US.
The bill which was first filed in the US Congress in 2009 is expected to be reintroduced this year. –Louella D. Desiderio (The Philippine Star)
July 2025
Nutrition Month
“Give us much more than P50 increase
for proper nutrition!”
Invoke Article 33 of the ILO Constitution
against the military junta in Myanmar
to carry out the 2021 ILO Commission of Inquiry recommendations
against serious violations of
Forced Labour and Freedom of Association protocols.
Accept National Unity Government (NUG)
of Myanmar. Reject Military!
#WearMask #WashHands #Distancing #TakePicturesVideosturesVideos
July
3 July – International Day of Cooperatives
3 July – International Plastic Bag Free Day
5 July – World Youth Skills Day
7 July – Global Forgiveness Day
11 July – World Population Day
17 July – World Day for International Justice
28 July – World Nature Conservation Day
30 July – World Day against Trafficking in Persons
Monthly Observances:
Schools Safety Month
Nutrition Month
National Disaster Consciousness Month
Weekly Observances:
Week 2: Cultural Communities Week
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise
Development Week
Week 3: National Science and
Technology Week
National Disability Prevention and
Rehabilitation Week
July 1-7:
National Culture Consciousness Week
July 13-19:
Philippines Business Week
Week ending last Saturday of July:
Arbor Week
Daily Observances:
First Saturday of July:
International Cooperative Day
in the Philippines
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.
