More than 500 Philippine workers and trade unionists joined a march on July 22nd in Quezon City, demanding that President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. declare support in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) for legislation that would further raise the minimum wage.
The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board approved a 35 PHP (approximately 0.60 US dollar) daily minimum wage hike for workers in the capital region earlier this month. This falls far short of the 150 PHP (about 3 US dollars) wage hike the National Wage Coalition has persistently called for to support workers’ economic recovery amid high inflation, poor job quality and a lack of new and decent jobs.
The Coalition, representing local workers across various industries and sectors, has remained steadfast in demanding livable wages and are advocating for multiple bills that have been introduced but still await action from the government.
The president has yet to engage in dialogue with Philippine …