The General Alliance of Workers Association (Gawa) is now pushing for the abolition of the regional wage board, alleging its failure to address the need for immediate economic relief for private sector workers in Western Visayas during the current economic crisis.
Call for Abolition
Wennie Sancho, Gawa secretary general, said it is high time that the regional wage board should be abolished. He emphasized that Republic Act 6727, the law that created the regional wage board, should be repealed as it is no longer relevant to its wage-fixing functions at a time when workers need it most.
"We need action on wage-related issues, not petitions. Labor should lobby for the filing and passage of the Fuel Wage Shock Protection Law to institutionalize automatic wage relief for all minimum wage earners in the private sector," Sancho added.
Workers' Suffering
Sancho noted that minimum wage workers are suffering not only in Western Visayas but across the country due to the immediate loss of their purchasing power. Prices of diesel, gasoline, and basic goods have increased due to external shocks such as conflicts in the Strait of Hormuz.
The existing wage-setting mechanism set up by the regional wage board requires months of petition, hearings, and wage consultations, leaving workers defenseless while prices skyrocket.
Constitutional Mandate
"It is the duty of the State to protect the erosion of workers' wages in line with the constitutional mandate that the State shall afford full protection to labor," Sancho said. He added that it is the duty of legislators to assess what bills should be filed to defend the rights and welfare of workers.
Fuel Wage Shock Protection Law
Sancho stressed that the proposed Fuel Wage Shock Protection Law is a "seatbelt on wages." It triggers a temporary shock allowance automatically when fuel and food prices breach set levels.
"No petition is needed to the Regional Wage Board. No delay due to wage hearings and consultations," Sancho said.
The payment for this shock allowance should be shared: 50 percent by employers, 30 percent by the government via excise and value-added tax holidays, and 30 percent from a Wage Shock Fund paid from oil windfall taxes. It shall cover all minimum wage earners regardless of status or position, with no exceptions.
Urgent Action Needed
"This must be asserted by the labor sector because there is no wage order on sight and the workers could no longer wait," Sancho said. He argued that if there is money for confidential intelligence funds and unprogrammed projects, there should be money for the Wage Shock Fund to keep workers alive.
"No increase in wages, no financial aid, or whatever scheme that would keep the workers' heads above water," he added.
