Duterte Government Considering “National Minimum Wage Law”

In the Philippines, most of the country’s workforce is concentrated in Metro Manila – not just because there really are lots of job opportunities available in the country’s capital and in nearby towns and cities but also because the wages are much higher there than in other places across the country.

Of course, the cost of living in Metro Manila is also definitely much higher than in other areas but to many workers, this does not matter much as long as they are getting a higher pay rate.

This is one of the reasons why the metropolis is congested because plenty of people from the provinces travel to the ‘big city’ in search of a better life. Most end up with broken dreams, however, as they don’t land the jobs they wanted and they might even end up in the streets, with no money to get back to their hometowns.

Mainly due to this reason, President Rodrigo Duterte mulls a “national minimum wage law”.

By NIB-MALACANANG (Malacañang Photo Bureau) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

By NIB-MALACANANG (Malacañang Photo Bureau) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III explained, “President Rodrigo Duterte wants Metro Manila and provincial workers to have the same wage. Many people flock to Manila because of the salary rate, in turn, Metro Manila suffers from overpopulation.

With this proposed law, the minimum wage will no longer depend on where the worker is located and regional wage boards will soon become ‘irrelevant’. Of course, this is still a proposal but Bello is hopeful this will be approved.

The labor secretary eyes the passage of the proposed consolidated wage hike bills which includes the proposed national minimum wage law by October.

This proposal is part of the president’s promise to decongest Metro Manila and to spread the country’s wealth and development to the provinces which had often been ‘neglected’ because the focus of the country’s coffers has always been in the development of Metro Manila.

How Much is the Minimum Wage in the Philippines?

Click here to see the list from the National Wages and Productivity Commission.

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