By rejecting the call of workers nationwide for Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to certify as urgent the proposed P200 legislated wage increase, he proved himself to be the chairman of the executive committee of the exploitative and oppressive ruling classes.
He has practically killed the proposed wage and showed to all and sundry that he will never promote the welfare of Filipino workers and instead protect and defend big business and comprador interests. Why is Marcos Jr. doing this? His umbilical cord is inextricably linked to those of billionaires, the plutocrats who comprise the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) and who advise him on practically all matters, from economic policy, tax breaks for the wealthy, the continuation of doleout programs to maintain poverty levels and further reduce wages, debt management, the sale of state properties, infrastructure projects, the sale of state properties and the privatization of state lands and the fire sale of other natural resources.
He would rather toss the issue of wage increases to the Regional Wage Boards (RWBs) that have been operating on the fiction that poverty levels in the regions are lower than in the urban areas, food is plentiful and the cost of living is not as high in industrialized regions. This thinking has led to the ignominious decisions of RWBs to reduce wage increases into a pittance, oblivious of the fact that power and water rates are pricier in the regions, transport fares are higher, along with the prices of basic commodities. RWBs have been denounced time and again for being under the thumb of big corporations, compradors and traditional politicians who profit from underpaid and oppressed workers. Marcos Jr. is washing his hands, Pontius Pilate-style, and eschewing responsibility for what the capitalist mob wants.
Yet, as Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) chairperson Elmer C. Labog stressed during the April 4, 2025 press briefing at the UP Hotel in UP Diliman, the All Workers Unity pressed for a national legislated wage increase precisely because the RWBs has consistently issued barmy decisions, approving puny increases that insult Filipino workers and belittle their reasonable demands for pay hikes. Jerome Adonis, KMU secretary general and a Makabayan senatorial candidate explained that workers are not begging for alms but are demanding a just wage increase. He dared Marcos Jr. and the labor bureaucrats to live on P645 a day in Metro Manila or P300 in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao “and see if they could survive.” Labog said All Workers Unity is preparing for more massive protests leading to the May 1 celebration of Labor Day and warned strikes may be called as the Marcos Jr. administration refuses to grant the P200 wage increase.
Labog explained that the call for wage increase and reduction in the prices of prime commodities can be achieved by doing away with EVAT, excise tax on fuel and other levies that had padded the costs of goods, services and burdened small businesses, professionals and millions of workers and peasants nationwide. Adonis argued that the worker demand for P1,200 family living wage (FLW) stands “as it is based on economic data and a slew of scientific studies.” Labog, Adonis, Arik Casilao of the Unyon ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) belied the claim of state economists and business groups that the economy will be ruined if government approves the P1,200 FLW nationwide.
Julie Gutierrez, spokesperson of Kilos Na Manggagawa, and Mimi Doringo, secretary-general of Kadamay and also a Makabayan senatorial candidate, explained that it is the Marcos administration that is pushing the country to economic perdition, raising the per capita debt to about P600,000 while political dynasties amass wealth by plundering up to 40% of the national budget annually. Meanwhile, Jacq Ruiz of the Kilusan ng Manggagawang Kababaihan (KMK) said informal workers have been at the receiving end of the heartlessness and absolute lack of compassion by the regime as they are denied protection, decent pay and the right to organize.
Santiago Dasmarinas, president of Courage, Sally Ejes of PH CEA-Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) also noted the plight of government employees and health workers that affect their morale and performance. Dasmarinas noted that it takes decades for employees to win a little increase in their pay while the Duterte and Marcos Jr. administrations have granted more benefits and pay hikes to the military and police. Ejes noted that the pay scale for Filipino health workers has not improved, the health system has deteriorated and more health professionals are seeking work overseas.
Raymond Basillo, secretary general of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), noted that both the Department of Education (DepEd) and the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) have not heeded the continuing demand for better salaries for teachers and non-academic personnel. He noted that resigned DepEd secretary Sara Zimmerman Duterte Carpio fiddled with billions from the DepEd budget, distributed rewards and allotted cash for dubious “informers” while the quality of education suffered. Renso Bajala, secretary general of BIEN, which unites workers in the call center industry, stressed that the pay scale in the industry is low, working conditions are not up to standards while foreign owners profit immensely. (DIEGO MORRA)
