MINIMUM wage earners and domestic helpers in Eastern Visayas, and domestic helpers in the Caraga region, are the latest areas whose wage orders granting pay hikes have been approved by the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC).
Minimum wage earners in Eastern Visayas will get a P50-wage increase, while domestic helpers will receive a P500-wage increase after the wage orders issued by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) Region VIII were affirmed by the NWPC.
The NWPC also approved the wage order issued by the RTWPB Region XIII granting pay hikes amounting to P500 and P1,000 for domestic helpers in Caraga region.
The NWPC is chaired by the Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III.
Under Wage Order No. RBVIII-22, the wage increase in Eastern Visayas will be implemented in two tranches–P25 upon effectivity of the wage order and another P25 on January 2, 2023.
After full implementation of wage tranches, workers in the non-agriculture sector and in retail and service establishments employing 11 or more workers will receive a daily wage of P375. Workers in the agriculture sector, cottage and handicraft, and retail and service establishments employing 10 workers or less, on the other hand, will receive a daily wage of P345.
For Wage Order No. RBVIII-DW-03, the Board has granted a P500-wage increase bringing the new minimum monthly wage rate for domestic helpers in Eastern Visayas to P5,000 for chartered cities and first-class municipalities and P4,500 for other municipalities.
“Around 82,712 workers in private establishments and 57,081 kasambahay are expected to benefit from the minimum wage increases in Eastern Visayas,” said Bello, adding that the previous wage orders for workers in private establishments and for domestic helpers took effect on August 18, 2019 and January 1, 2020, respectively.
Additionally, the RTWPB Region XIII issued Wage Order No. RXIII-DW-03 granting wage increases amounting to P500 and P1,000 bringing the new monthly wage rate for domestic helpers in Caraga to P4,000.
Around 32,867 domestic workers in the region are expected to benefit from the minimum wage increase. The previous Wage Order for domestic helpers took effect on October 4, 2019.
The wage orders will take effect after fifteen days from publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the region.
Meanwhile, Bello said the pay hike for minimum wage earners in Caraga already took effect on June 6.