The Pasig Regional Trial Court has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) stopping the implementation of the ₱85 increase in the minimum wage in Metro Manila.
In an eight-page order, Presiding Judge Marie Joyce Manongsong granted the plea of petitioners Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-II Builders, Inc. to suspend NCR Wage Order No. 27 “pending resolution of the petition for declaratory relief.”
The court barred the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-NCR and the National Wages and Productivity Commission from enforcing the wage hike until August 13. The TRO was conditioned on a ₱1 million bond to be posted by the petitioners.
“The court finds that the peculiar circumstances of this case justify the issuance of a temporary restraining order to briefly stall the implementation of the assailed wage order,” the ruling stated. A hearing on the petitioners’ plea for a writ of preliminary injunction is set for August 3.
The petition was heard on July 28, following a status quo ante order issued by Executive Judge Achilles Balauitan on July 24, a day before the wage order’s effectivity.
Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino said he was saddened by the ruling but stressed the department would respect the court’s decision. In a statement, the agency said it would defer to the judiciary based on the order.# (ZIA LUNA)
