Aquino won't certify as urgent wage hike bill

President Benigno Aquino III is not keen on certifying as urgent a proposed measure seeking a P125 across the board wage hike, a Malacañang official said on Tuesday. “We’re not contemplating that right now," said Ricky Carandang, head of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office, when asked if there is a chance that Aquino would certify the bill as urgent. Carandang noted that Aquino, during his stint in the House of Representatives and Senate, did not vote for the approval of the bill on P125 wage hike. “What the President supported when he was a member of Congress was a bill that would increase penalties for companies that were not complying with the minimum wage law but not with the increase per se," he said. Carandang said Malacañang is apprehensive with a legislated wage increase because it might cause distortions in wages. “Number one, you might cause inflationary pressures. Alam naman natin na malaking concern iyong pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin (We all know that an increase in the prices of basic commodities is a big conern)," he said. Carandang said a legislated nationwide across the board minimum wage increase could stoke inflation fear. He said it would be better if the adjustments would be done on the regional wage board level. “When you increase wages without an increase in productivity, eventually tumataas yung presyo ng bilihin (Prices of basic commodities shoot up). So we have to be very careful about considering legislated wage increases," he said. “Right now we believe that the wage board system is probably a better way to factor in those elements," he added. Insensitive? In a press statement, Anakpawis party-list Rep. Rafael Mariano criticized Malacañang for thumbing down the legislated wage hike proposal, saying it shows that the Aquino administration is “insensitive on the plight of workers confronting severe economic crisis, extreme poverty and hunger." “Sana nag-isip muna si Secretary Carandang bago nagsalita hinggil sa P125 legislated wage hike. Lumalabas kasalanan pa ng mga manggagawa kapag humingi sila ng dagdag na sahod. Isa itong malaking insulto sa mga manggagawa," Mariano said. (Secretary Carandang’s statement is an insult to workers. It seems like he’s faulting the workers for asking for an increase in their wages.) He said Carandang’s statement is exactly the same justification used by employers to freeze wages and oppose a substantial wage increase. “The Aquino administration is obviously mouthing the same old and rotten capitalist line against workers’ rights to a just and living wage." He said increasing the workers’ wages will boost their purchasing power, and if employers trim their profit margins instead of passing on higher costs to consumers, inflation will not rise significantly. “If government is really sincere in combating inflation and helping the poor majority, it should rein in the rising costs of food, oil, power rates, and other basic commodities," Mariano said. He added it was the regionalized wage settings that caused distortion of wages. “Aside from different minimum wage from one region to another, giving the task of studying, fixing and raising wages to Regional Wage Boards, has caused minimum wages to remain grossly inadequate to support decent living standards and underscores government failure to provide economic relief for workers," he said. - KBK, GMA News