DOLE fears price increase due to P100 wage hike

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) expressed fear of a possible price increase of basic commodities once the proposed  P100 legislated hike is implemented.However,  labor groups Partido Manggagawa (PM) and Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU)  lambasted the DOLE and the Employers Confederation of the Philippines  (ECOP) for opposing the wage increase and for peddling fake news that the wage increase would hurt the economy.In a press briefing, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said the department is not against the pending legislated wage hike but warned that it may have an impact on micro and small businesses.He said that some businesses can handle the wage increase but said most of the businesses that are under micro and small categories may have a hard time coping with the salary increase.The DOLEchief said when there are salary increases, the prices of basic goods and  transport services also increase, describing it  like a chain reaction.“That’s why the DOLE is always looking for a balance. The DOLE is looking for possible interventions to help micro and small businesses in case the minimum wage increases by P100,” Laguesma added.However, the PM  lambasted Sergio Ortiz-Luis of ECOP for feigning concern for workers when in truth he just doesn’t want profits reduced through a wage hike.”“Ortiz-Luis is peddling fake news. Let us be evidence-based with the numbers. The latest Labor Force Survey shows that 49.2%, about half, of the total 50.5 million labor force, are 24.8 million workers employed in private firms. Of which, one fifth or 4.1 million are minimum wage earners. Another 13.8 million workers, about a quarter or 27.4% of the labor force, are self-employed with no employees,” PM chairman Rene Magtubo said. Vito BarceloHe said that the majority of them are informal workers like street vendors and tricycle drivers while a minority are middle-class professionals like doctors and lawyers, saying  three quarters of the labor force or more than 30 million workers stand to benefit from a wage hike.“Ortiz-Luis is being disingenuous as he is actually defending the interests of the one million employers or 2% of the labor force,” Magtubo added.