The militant labor organization Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) on Tuesday slammed the Department of Labor and Employment’s (DOLE) implementation of a labor advisory allowing wage cuts on employees’ salaries.
“What all the Filipino workers need right now from the government are immediate cash aid and safe workplaces, not wage cuts,” said Ed Cubelo, Kilusang Mayo Uno-Metro Manila spokesperson in response to the recently issued Department of Labor and Employment Labor Advisory No. 17 Series of 2020.
Section 5 of DOLE Labor Advisory No. 17 states that, “Employers and employees may agree voluntarily and in writing to temporarily adjust employees’ wage and wage-related benefits as provided for in existing employment contract, company policy or collective bargaining agreement (CBA).”
“Permitting wage cuts will only further burden the workers who are already mired in debt and bills due to the two-month lockdown imposed by the Duterte administration. Instead of wage cuts, the workers need cash aid immediately. Not all workers were given financial aid because DOLE only gave assistance to 657,201 formal workers when it was the same government institution who said that 2.5 million workers were displaced due to the lockdown,” said Cubelo.
The group slammed DOLE for issuing the anti-worker DOLE Labor Advisory No. 17 that contains the permission for wage cuts.
“Wala na ngang panggastos sa loob ng dalawang buwan, babawasan pa yung sahod ng mga manggagawa. Ano pa ang matitira para sa mga manggagawa na patung-patong na ang utang at mga bayarin sa bahay dahil sa lockdown ni Duterte?” Cubelo said.
“Even before the pandemic, Filipino workers have been demanding for higher wages and regularization. But the Duterte government did not heed the workers’ just demands. Instead, he brushed off suggestions for wage increase and gave false hopes to end contractualization. Both of these are now troubling the workers because they are being pushed by the DOLE Labor Advisory to choose between having a job with a lower salary or be unemployed due to lack of job security,” he added.
KMU-Metro Manila said that the Filipino workers are the ones most affected with the lockdown and the government’s neglect. As work partially resumes across the country today, some workers are seen walking for hours just to get to work and earn for a living after two months of no financial aid.
Malacañang also said that the government has no plans for COVID-19 mass testing and is leaving it up to the private sector to shoulder the testing.
“In one day, the Duterte government abandoned the workers in three ways: no mass transportation, no mass testing and wage cuts. This
government is pushing the workers further into hunger and unemployment,” said Cubelo.
The labor group reiterated their demand for a P10,000 financial aid to all the workers in the country. They also said that government subsidy should also include the payment of water and electricity bills, including house rent. KMU-Metro Manila said that the subsidies will help the workers to bounce back from the heavy brunt of the lockdown.
KMU-Metro Manila also said that such calls are doable, including mass testing, and that Duterte has emergency powers and has already gathered loans and aids for the COVID-19 response from other countries and international financial institutions.
The Duterte administration has already secured a $1.7 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank and $600 million from the World Bank. Aside from that, a $750 million loan from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in China is set to be approved.