Editorial

Living through salary

Who wouldn’t want a salary hike as a wage earner, especially for the private sector? Top executives have allowances other than receipt of high wages, but not the wage earners. Due to spiraling cost of commodities and services, the labor group now demands  another wage increase. Recent surveys by the Social Weather Station indicated the want for higher wages.

        A militant bloc in the House of Representatives filed a bill for a nation-wide increase of minimum wage to P750. The alliance of Trade Union Congress of the Philippines seeks an increase of P320 across the board. But the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and some employers’ group could only peg it from P18 to P23, which the workers decry the ceiling as “barya” only. On the other hand, it is reported that the Philippines has the highest minimum salary in the ASEAN region… is it so realistic and that comparative as to value it gets?

        In our country, daily wage is differentiated by region depending on the interplay of factors, one of which is the cost of living and so-called supra-intervening factor(s). It is the regional wage board with participation of the labor and employer sectors that assess and recommend the hike for minimum wage for a year of implementation at most; but there are still private firms that do not give the recommended and approved daily wages for agricultural and non-agricultural sectors. For Region-12, the minimum wage is now more than P300 a day compared to Metro Manila at some P570.

        Lately, the Labor Department has directed the regional wage boards to fast track the review on daily wages and submit their recommendations. Would the raise be by regional level or by national legislation? What ceiling is most reasonable and affordable? Look at what Japan is offering for oversea employment --- a careworker or caregiver is offered near P50,000 and up and a registered nurse to some P42,000 and up a month. Caregivers/nurses are most wanting in this country because of the prominence of elders/senior citizens. No wonder many Pinoys and Pinays would prefer oversea employment because of high wages… never mind the reported abuses by some employers abroad?

        What was P8 a day minimum way back in the 70s is only a PUJ fare today. When do prices go down the original level when these spiral up in time? Forces/factors  affect capital and earnings. Life can only be accommodating with economics when there hangs the balance between these forces.

        Quality of life, they say, is dependent on economics. How do we balance this dependency paradigm? While the labor group demands this much, the employer sector could only offer this much also. Production is essential for survival and labor provides the energy for the produce. These two have to come into terms. Both are economic beings.

        For the moment, wage earners have to make the necessary budgeting… if there is something to even the pie. A raise could still be a sigh of relief, though little it could go… as long as there is one for the pocket as humanely possible, we pray.