Responses to the recently mandated increase in the minimum wage in Metro Manila to P85 a day were a classic case of the saying “you can’t please all of the people all of the time.”

Trade groups, the Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) and the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), reiterated their concern that the wage hike in Metro Manila could add pressure on businesses already facing elevated energy, logistics, and financing costs.

Both said the wage adjustment should be matched with measures that improve productivity and reduce the cost of doing business to ensure companies, particularly micro, small and medium enterprises, can continue to create jobs and invest in growth.

ACT: It falls short

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines said the newly approved P85 daily wage increase for minimum wage earners in Metro Manila is insufficient to address the worsening economic conditions faced by workers, including public school teachers.

“The P85 increase remains grossly inadequate against the relentless rise in the prices of food, transportation, housing, utilities, fuel, and other necessities,” ACT chairperson Ruby Bernardo said in a statement.

“Workers deserve living wages — not piecemeal adjustments that are immediately wiped out by inflation,” it added.

ACT said public school teachers continue to suffer the same erosion of purchasing power as other workers, while carrying the additional burden of sustaining what it described as an underfunded public education system.

Left-wing solons ‘disappointed’

In separate statements, Kamanggagawa Partylist Rep. Eli San Fernando and Gabriela Women’s Partylist Rep. Sarah Elago expressed their disappointment, believing that the increase was merely meant to stall talks of implementing a more considerable hike.

San Fernando stressed that the plan of the Department of Labor and Employment completely undermined the fact that the purchasing power of the Philippine Peso has decreased substantially since 2018.

The lawmaker cited a report from the Philippine Statistics Authority indicating that the purchasing power of the peso has declined by 30 percent, a metric he said translates to a P100-P200 cut for workers earning daily wages.