Pasig court orders status quo ante in challenge to NCR wage hike
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A Pasig court has ordered the restoration of wage rates that existed before Metro Manila's latest minimum wage increase took effect, granting a status quo ante order sought by two construction firms while their legal challenge is heard.
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) confirmed the court order on Thursday, saying the implementation of the National Capital Region's P85 minimum wage increase would be suspended for now.
Labor Acting Secretary Francis Tolentino said the agency would comply with the court's directive despite disagreeing with the outcome.
The order stems from a petition filed by Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-11 Builders Inc. questioning the validity of Wage Order No. NCR-27 issued by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region (RTWPB-NCR).
In a 24 July order, Pasig Regional Trial Court Executive Judge Achilles A.A.C. Bulaitan declined to issue the 72-hour temporary restraining order (TRO) sought by the companies but granted their alternative request for a status quo ante order.
"The court is not inclined to grant the 72-hours TRO," Bulaitan said.
The judge, however, ruled that the parties should maintain the status quo while the case is raffled to a regular trial court branch that will hear the petition.
"Considering the nature of the petition, and the incoming weekend, there is an urgent need to maintain the status quo between the parties before the petitioners' application for a Temporary Restraining Order could be heard," the order stated.
Bulaitan said the directive would give the court eventually assigned to the case "sufficient time to study the merits of the petitioners' application for ancillary remedies."
The order directed the parties to maintain the status quo until the assigned court hears the TRO application, unless the directive is revoked earlier.
According to DOLE, the status quo ante order means the wage rates in effect before the issuance of Wage Order No. NCR-27 will temporarily remain in place.
The ruling was issued a day before the first tranche of the wage increase was scheduled to take effect on 25 July.
Under Wage Order No. NCR-27, minimum wage earners in Metro Manila's non-agriculture sector were set to receive a P60 increase, raising the daily minimum wage from P695 to P755. Workers in agriculture, service and retail establishments employing 15 workers or fewer, and manufacturing firms with fewer than 10 regular employees were set to receive an increase from P658 to P718.
A second tranche worth P25 is scheduled for implementation in January 2027, bringing the total increase to P85.
The wage order was expected to benefit more than 1.1 million minimum wage earners in the capital region and was described by DOLE as the largest wage adjustment ever granted in Metro Manila.
