House Deputy Majority Leader and Iloilo Third District Representative Lorenz Defensor is urging fellow lawmakers and stakeholders to support House Bill No. 8246, which seeks to implement a staggered wage hike for Filipino workers.
During a hearing of the House Committee on Labor and Employment, Defensor said the measure aims to gradually increase workers’ wages while allowing businesses, particularly micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), to adjust to higher labor costs.
“If the wage hike is big and sudden, the bill will surely die and the wage hike will not continue. But if the wage hike is reasonable and slow, according to the capabilities of our industries and our government, I am sure that it will continue,” he explained.
Defensor said wage increases could be implemented in phases, such as P50 or P100 in the first year, followed by additional increases in succeeding years, depending on employers’ capacity.
“This staggered wage hike bill will not suddenly make our micro, small, and medium enterprises suffer. It will not destroy the large industries that bring jobs for our workers,” he said.Carla Eunice Guevara, WVSU-COC intern/IMT
