By David Vera
The new wage order by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board Region 8 (RTWPB R-8) adding a PHP30 daily pay increase for minimum wage earners in the Eastern Visayas region is set to take effect on December 2, 2024. This decision will benefit approximately 126, 000 workers across the region.
Wage Order No. 24, which was issued on November 5, 2024, introduces the wage hike in two phases. The first phase—granting a PHP15 daily increase—will be implemented starting December 2, while the second phase, also amounting to PHP15 per day, will take effect starting June 1, 2025.
Under this adjustment, the new daily minimum wage for workers in the non-agriculture sector and service retail establishments employing 11 or more workers will rise from PHP405 to PHP435. For cottage industry workers and service retail establishments with fewer than 11 employees, the minimum wage will increase from PHP375 to PHP405.
The decision followed extensive consultations conducted by the RTWPB, chaired by Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Regional Director Dax Villaruel. Public hearings were held in various cities, including Catbalogan, Ormoc, Maasin, and Catarman, from September 5 to September 26, 2024, to gather input from both workers and employers.
“The board carefully considered socio-economic indicators such as the consumer price index, inflation rate, and poverty thresholds—averaging 3.6 percent from November 2023 to September 2024,” Villaruel said during a press briefing. The adjustments aim to help workers cope with the rising cost of living.
Additionally, the RTWPB Eastern Visayas approved a PHP500 increase in the monthly salary of “kasambahay” (domestic workers), raising their monthly minimum wage to a new range of PHP 5, 500 to PHP 6, 000. This increase will affect approximately 57, 000 domestic workers in the region’s six provinces.
The RTWPB, which is chaired by the DOLE regional director, is a tripartite body consisting of six members—three from the government, two from the workers’ sector, and one from the employers’ sector.