Labor leaders on Thursday, April 29, called on Congress to pass and treat with urgency House Bill 9262 that proposes a P100 emergency daily wage subsidy to the country’s 23 million workers.
On the other hand, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas chairman and former Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano appealed for the distribution of P15,000 in subsidy for workers in the agricultural sector to cover their additional production expenses.
In a virtual press conference organized by the Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives, Jerome Adonis of Kilusang Mayo Uno batted for the immediate passage of HB 9262 that will cover wages “eaten up” by inflation that is being triggered by the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Both Adonis and Mariano revealed that the usual Labor Day protest action will be conducted by various workers groups on Saturday at the Liwasang Bonifacio.
The two labor leaders assured police and local government authorities that health protocols imposed by government will be strictly implemented.
In the same news conference, Bayan Muna Reps. Eufemia Cullamat and Ferdinand Gaite called on the House leadership to include HB 9262 in the list of legislative priorities.
Gaite explained that the bill was filed by Makabayan bloc solons in response to the clamor of various labor groups that have noted a huge gap between the nominal amount of daily minimum wages and its value.
Citing a study conducted by think-tank Ibon Foundation, Gaite said the purchasing power of most minimum wage earners have dropped by a hundred pesos per day due to inflation.
Ibon said that the real value of the Php537 NCR minimum wage is just Php434 as of December 2020.
Authors of the HB 9262 are also targetting the P19 billion of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict or NTF-ELCAC, amidst widespread calls from the public and several lawmakers including some Senators to defund the red-tagging task force.
"Since there are calls to defund the NTF-ELCAC, this bill presents another alternative to where their funds could be reallocated,” said Gaite.
Cullamat, on the other hand, batted for the passage of the bill proposing a P10,000 financial assistance to all families facing the COVID-19 crisis.
“Napakalala na ng epekto sa ekonomya ng sunod-sunod na Enhanced Community Quarantines sa bansa, higit na mabigat ito sa mga pamilya ng mahihirap nating kababayan (The continuous implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantines in the country has adversely affected the economy, poor families are suffering the most),” noted Cullamat.