Minimum Wage Increase in Cordillera, Bicol, and Eastern Visayas Effective December 5
Cordillera Administrative Region – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced that a total of 150,484 minimum wage earners in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Bicol, and Eastern Visayas will benefit from a pay hike effective December 5. The National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) has affirmed the wage orders submitted by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) in these regions, providing for a PHP30 wage increase. The wage orders will be published on November 19.
According to Philippines News Agency, the DOLE, the wage boards have also adjusted the salary of kasambahays, which ranges from PHP400 to PHP1,000. This increase will benefit around 162,970 domestic workers, with about 21 percent (34,111) on live-in arrangements. In the CAR, Wage Order No. CAR-22, issued motu proprio on November 6, raised the new daily minimum wage rate to PHP430. This applies to all minimum wage earners in the private sector within the region. In Bicol, following a petition, Wage Order No. RBV-21 was issued on October 23, increasing the daily minimum wage to PHP395.
In Eastern Visayas, Wage Order No. RB VIII-23, issued motu proprio on November 6, set the new minimum wage rate at PHP405 for the non-agriculture sector and retail or service establishments employing 11 workers and above, while those in the cottage and handicraft industry, agriculture sector, and retail or service establishments employing 10 workers and below, will receive PHP375. For household workers, the CAR wage board issued Wage Order No. RB-CAR-DW-05, increasing their monthly minimum wage by PHP400 to PHP4,900. The Bicol wage board’s Wage Order No. RBV-DW-03 granted a PHP1,000 increase in the monthly salary of household workers to PHP5,000, and the Eastern Visayas wage board’s Wage Order No. RB VIII-DW-04 set a monthly increase of PHP500 for kasambahays, bringing their pay to PHP5,500 in chartered cities and first-class municipalities, and PHP5,000 in other municipalities. These new wage orders are set to build on the last wage adjustments, which became effective in June 2022.