President Rodrigo Duterte’s so-called surprise for Filipino laborers this Labor Day drew mixed responses from various labor groups on Thursday, raising hopes of a possible end to contractual labor in the Philippines.
“We welcome the gesture of President Duterte to give a gift to workers as government’s appreciation to workers who build and sustain the country’s high economic growth on their backs,” said Alan Tanjusay, spokesperson of Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP).
“If Mr. Duterte means his promise for genuine change for the people, it is always excellent to begin by alleviating workers and their families from poverty,” he added.
Duterte is set to hold a May 1 assembly at the People’s Park in Davao City, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III announced.
Duterte is reportedly mulling a surprise gift for Filipino workers.
The moderate ALU-TUCP is hoping for the Department of Labor and Employment to issue a “monthly cash subsidy and significant wage hike for worker.”
But the more radical Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) said that is not enough.
“Filipino workers need a more substantial and sustainable wage hike through the implementation of a National Minimum Wage of P750 daily for private sector workers and P16,000 for government employees,” the group explained.
It said the national minimum wage “would serve as an immediate relief for workers amidst our growing hunger and poverty.”
KMU stressed that the allowance and wage hike ALU-TUCP hopes “would not suffice to, even at the very least, ease Filipino workers’ worsening hunger and poverty.”
Earlier in the day, calling themselves “strange bedfellows,” center left ALU-TUCP together with its umbrella coalition Nagkaisa banded with far left KMU in a historic first move to condemn contractual labor in the country.
The two have been at odds on various labor issues, with ALU-TUCP often sitting in tripartite dialogues to come up with compromises with business and government representatives.
As not all relevant stakeholder groups are represented during tripartite discussions, not all gaps and concerns in the workplace are raised. There is almost always post-dialogue resistance from the very same groups that refused to engage in the discussions.
ALU-TUCP has been filing petitions for floor wag hikes before regional wage boards, while KMU has been consistent with their call for a national across-the-board minimum wage.
President Duterte is set to meet with top officials of ALU-TUCP in a dialogue with labor groups at 3 pm on Labor Day before he delivers his Labor Day speech.
KMU also extended its invitation to the president for a consultation a day before Labor Day.
Photo Credit: Malacañang
