February 27, 20242 yr [hide] Employers on Monday assailed the latest wage hike push brewing at the House of Representatives, warning that any proposal pushing for an even higher increase than the P100 approved by the Senate would lead to more disastrous consequences. Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., president of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (Ecop), told the Inquirer that the impact of the proposal at the House, particularly a bill seeking a P350 increase in the minimum daily wage for all private sector workers, would cause a steeper increase in the country’s inflation rate. APPEAL FROMTHE POOR Members of urban poor groups, in this January 2023 photo, stage a protest in front of Commonwealth Market in Quezon City to air their appeal for an increase in daily wage amid the soaring food prices. —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA Employers on Monday assailed the latest wage hike push brewing at the House of Representatives, warning that any proposal pushing for an even higher increase than the P100 approved by the Senate would lead to more disastrous consequences. Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., president of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (Ecop), told the Inquirer that the impact of the proposal at the House, particularly a bill seeking a P350 increase in the minimum daily wage for all private sector workers, would cause a steeper increase in the country’s inflation rate. “For the P100 wage increase from the Senate, we’ve already estimated that it will actually lead to a 2 [percentage point increase in] inflation,” Ortiz-Luis said in a phone interview, warning that the House measure would raise this by 7 percentage points or more. “This P350 wage hike, this means goodbye to the Philippines for investors,” he added, citing that many investors who they have talked to have postponed expansion plans or ventures pending the resolution of this matter. The Ecop official said that a P350 wage hike undoubtedly would lead to the closure of many micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) since many would be unable to cope with the additional expenses that an increase of such magnitude would cause. [/hide] Edited February 27, 20242 yr by greizz08
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