Poll bets allergic to P1,200 wage hike

Poll bets allergic to P1,200 wage hike

KMU chairperson Elmer ‘Ka Bong’ Labog

By Diego Mora

Hundreds of thousands of Filipino workers marched on May 1, 2025 to press for the immediate approval of the P1,200 family living wage, which is barely enough to sustain the daily needs of a family of five, based on studies conducted by IBON Foundation, and the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) urged all candidates to support the demand.

KMU chairperson Elmer “Ka Bong” Labog said apart from the Makabayan Coalition and other worker candidates, senatorial and congressional aspirants have had their mouths sealed, refusing to endorse the proposed P1,200 minimum wage or not showing any interest in the clamor for as pay increase that the IBON Foundation described as the least amount needed to feed, clothe and shelter a family of five Labog and KMU secretary general Jerome Adonis, who is running for the Senate, said the wage increase is “urgent, necessary and just.”

Aside from the main protest center in Manila, protests were held in Baguio City, Pampanga, Laguna, Iloilo, Cebu and Davao City, with KMU’s regional counterparts and allied groups mobilizing thousands to press for the approval of the wage increase to provide workers some relief. Various surveys conducted by Social Weather Stations (SWS) Pulse Asia and ahn alphabet soup of polling firms proved that instead of improving the people’s economic condition, the Marcos Jr. administration has succeeding in worsening the situation of the working class, with the number of the self-rated poor and hungry rising to 70% in Mindanao, 63% in the Visayas and up to 55% in Luzon.

KMU also challenged candidates in the May 12, 2025 elections to grab the bull by the horns, confront the problem of low pay head-on and not try to sweep it under the rug. Poverty and hunger cannot be mitigated by promises that bombard the ears of audience members during campaign sorties. The pangs of hunger cannot be relieved by P20 per kilo rice that cannot satisfy the nation’s daily consumption for 10 days.

“Marcos’ free train rides and job fairs are mere publicity stunts. What we need is an efficient public transportation system, sufficient wages for our families, and safe and decent jobs. Bongbong should heed our demands, not turn us into props for his political charade!” Labog argued. KMU also lashed out at the Marcos jr. economic framework, which means privatization of public services, trade liberalization and deregulation of key industries to attract foreign capital at the expense of the Filipino people and millions of workers.

Worse, Labog explained, Marcos Jr. has become a servitor of the United States as it seeks to strengthen its economic control of the region through a common front against China while seeking to redeploy its military and naval forces by way of recurrent war exercises, deployment of war materiel, and overall aggressive military positioning in the Philippines and in the Asia-Pacific. Moreover, the US has slapped

A 17% tariff on Philippine exports to the US, hitting the microelectronics assembly sector, the coconut industry and the few agricultural products allowed in the US.  industry, with Washington imposing non-tariff barriers for decades to prevent other Philippine products from entering the US market. While the US enjoyed parity rights in the Philippines after the bogus independence of 1946, American businessmen and corporations were more equal than Filipinos until 1974.

Today, the minimum wage only satisfies between 36% and 54% of the daily needs of a worker and his family. Labog and Adonis said the regional wage boards (RWBs) organized by the state to “rationalize” wage-setting have become a joke as they act as servitors of capitalists, granting puny wage increases on the pretext that poverty rates differ regionally. “Ang nakabubuhay na sahod ng ₱1,200 para sa pamilya ay kinakailangan upang matiyak na may panggastos ang mga manggagawa para sa pagkain, pabahay, gamot, at transportasyon,” KMU stressed. Moreover. KMU has demanded an end to contractualization, respect for the right of workers to organize their own unions and engage in collective bargaining. In Cebu, AMA Sugbo and Partido Lakas Masa spearheaded the protests while KMU-Cordillera mobilized for the rally in Baguio City. Protest actions were also conducted in Panay, Bicol, Laguna, Cavite, Bacolod, Pampanga, Davao and Iligan.

“Hindi makakaahon sa lusak si Bongbong Marcos Jr sa mata ng mamamayang Pilipino at patuloy s’yang sisingilin sa kanyang kainutilang dinggin ang panawagan ng mamamayan para sa dagdag na sahod at mababang presyo ng bilihin, pagwawakas sa kontraktwalisasyon at pagtigil sa atake sa karapatan ng mamamayan,” Adonis said. Labog said May 1, 2025 is the 45th founding anniversary of KMU, which was established to fight for the interest of millions of workers against the state, which has been protecting big foreign and local capitalists. KMU enjoined all workers to vote for the politics of change on May 12. It urged all workers to continue militantly asserting their rights to living wages, to decent jobs, to unionize and to strike until they achieve genuine change.

The Marcos Jr. regime has not acted favorably on the demand for the ₱200 pay hike by the National Wage Coalition (NWC.) The call for the ₱200 wage increase came after Marcos Jr. granted a ₱200 increase in the allowances of policemen and soldiers. “Ang panawagan natin ay para kay Marcos na mamuno mula sa harap, at hindi sa likod ng mga paulit-ulit na direktiba ng mga depektibong wage board,” NWC said. In the event that the government relents despite the claims of plutocrats that higher wages would shuitter businesses and force foreign  investors to flee, the small ₱200 pay hike would be the first legislated wage increase in 36 years. Apart from the KMU, the other NWC members are the Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), Nagkaisa Labor Coalition (NLC) and Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP.) The Federation of Free Workers (FFW), Partido Manggagawa (PM), Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL) and Public Services Labor Independent Confederation (PSLIC) comprise NLC.