‘Pandemic cuts wage rates in 2020’

MANILA, Philippines — The average monthly wage rate in the country declined in 2020 as the pandemic highlighted its massive impact on the labor market.

The 2020 Occupational Wages Survey of the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that the average monthly wage rate of time-rated workers on full-time basis of 190 monitored occupations was at P16,486, nine percent lower than the 2018 level of P18,108.

Done biennially, the survey covers 190 industry-specific occupations and is aimed at generating wage statistics as critical inputs to policies on wage and salary administration and wage determination, particularly in wage-fixing, price policies and collective bargaining negotiations.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort explained that the decline in 2020 was a reflection of the dynamics in the labor market as well as the entry of more graduates looking for jobs.

This is also in relation to the massive temporary and permanent job losses at the height of the pandemic amid closures of businesses and the return of migrant workers.

“On top of job losses in 2020, shorter worker hours in response to the lockdowns, especially for businesses not allowed or partially allowed to operate, led to reduced production and lower working hours for adversely affected workers, thereby reducing the effective wages earned,” Ricafort said.

He noted there might be some improvements in the wages data as the economy reopens and recovers from the pandemic, but warned that it would depend on the pace of the economic rebound.

He said improvement in both wages and employment would be gradual, as consistent with the relatively slower economic recovery following the latest surge in COVID-19 cases.

Ricafort stressed that the improvement of labor and wages would hinge on the continued easing of the alert level system and resumption of foreign tourism to create more jobs across several industries.

Based on the wage survey, the highest average monthly wage rate was recorded for mathematicians, actuaries and statisticians in insurance, reinsurance and pension funding at P63,368.