DOLE Bicol tackles wage hike as urged by Salceda

By Rhaydz B. Barcia

Two weeks after Albay 2nd District Representative Joey Salceda called for a salary increase for private employees in the region, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) finally conducted a public hearing on minimum wage adjustment in the region.

The labor department in Bicol led by Director Ma. Zenaida A. Angara-Campita has conducted a public hearing on minimum wage adjustment in the region held at the Avenue Plaza Hotel in Naga City on Tuesday, April 26.

Salceda wrote a letter two weeks ago to Campita expressing his support to the request of labor groups for wage hike following the increasing prices of food and fuel products amid the Russia-Ukraine war and Covid-19 pandemic.

“This is to express my support for reasonable increases in the minimum wage in the Bicol region, in response to requests from various sectors, including labor groups for meaningful adjustments in the minimum wage in the region,” Salceda said.

“I express this support both as a member of Congress representing Albay and as co-chairman of the Economic Stimulus and Recovery Cluster of the House Defeat Covid-19 committee,” the lawmaker said.

Salceda, House Committee on Ways and Means chairperson, said that per DOLE Wage Order No. 20, workers in Bicol currently receive a minimum wage of P335 per day, which was updated in two tranches. This was effected in 2020.

Salceda said that since the issuance of the wage order, there were significant increases in the cost-of-living, 2.6 percent in 2020, 4.5 percent in 2021, and as much as 6 percent in March 2022.

“I express my strong support for requests and petitions for wage adjustments to at least partly be subject to the deliberation of the board,” he said.

Salceda said that Bicolanos deserve a wage increase and a reliable source of income because of current high prices of food and fuel products.

“May I also request to be furnished a copy of pending petitions with the board for adjustments in the minimum wage, so that my committee may be able to study them better. I hope to come up with a more detailed analysis and appropriate statement of support for such petitions,” Salceda said.