HOUSE Minority Leader and 4Ps party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan has welcomed the issuance of a ₱35 wage increase order for Eastern Visayas, saying the adjustment will provide much-needed relief to private-sector workers confronting rising living costs.
“The increase gives more meaning to the constitutional right of workers to a living wage,” Libanan said in a statement.
“This helps narrow the gap between current minimum wages and the living-wage standard envisioned in the 1987 Constitution, which places the dignity and welfare of workers at the center of national policy,” he added.
Libanan issued the statement following the release of Wage Order No. RB VIII-25 by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Eastern Visayas.
The wage hike will be implemented in two tranches, 17 effective Dec. 8, 2025, and ₱18 starting June 1, 2026
With the first tranche, the daily minimum wage will go up to ₱452 for non-agricultural workers and ₱422 for agricultural workers. Beginning June 1, 2026, these rates will further increase to ₱470 and ₱440, respectively.
The new wage rates apply to private-sector workers in Eastern Samar, Northern Samar, Samar (Western Samar), Leyte, Southern Leyte, and Biliran.
As of Nov. 22, the RTWPB in Eastern Visayas becomes the 12th regional board to issue a wage increase order this year.
Five boards have yet to issue adjustments. They are the Cordillera Administrative Region, MIMAROPA (Region IV-B), Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX), Northern Mindanao (Region X) and Caraga (Region XIII)
Libanan stressed that while the increase is modest, it reflects the continuing responsibility of wage boards to uphold constitutional standards.
“The Constitution mandates not just a minimum wage, but a living wage—one that allows Filipino families to live with dignity. We must keep pushing wages toward that benchmark so workers are not left behind by inflation and economic pressures,” he said.
Libanan, a lawyer by profession, previously served as the representative of the lone district of Eastern Samar for nine years.
