DOLE launches P20/kilo rice program for minimum wage earners

MANILA, Philippines — Minimum wage earners across the country can now purchase rice at P20 per kilo following the national expansion of a government subsidy program aimed at easing living costs for low-income workers.

Jointly implemented by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the initiative provides access to rice sourced from stocks purchased by the National Food Authority (NFA) from local farmers.

Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said extending the program to cover minimum wage earners is expected to improve their purchasing capacity.

“If a worker buys 10 kilos of rice at P20 per kilo, that translates to a savings of P100 to P200—funds they can allocate for other essential needs,” he said.

Initially launched in Cebu on May 1, the program is in its pilot phase until December. Nearly 120,000 workers from more than 500 establishments are expected to benefit in the early stages, with participation projected to grow as more employers join.

The initiative also targets other vulnerable sectors such as solo parents, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and indigent families, aiming to assist as many as 14 million Filipinos.

The Department of Agriculture has been directed to continue and expand the program through the end of President Marcos term in 2028.

President Marcos not against wage hike – Palace

President Marcos is not against wage increase as it would improve the condition of Filipino workers, Malacañang said yesterday.

Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro made the response when asked to comment on critics’ claim that Marcos “killed” the proposed P200 across-the-board wage hike.

“Is the President a dictator? He’s not. Let’s just leave that issue to Congress for now.And the President is not opposed to increase, wage hike, because this will benefit the workers,” Castro said at a press briefing.

“The regional tripartite wages and productivity board is studying this, and in every region, in every place, our countrymen are seeing an increase in their salaries,” she said.

House spokesperson Princess Abante earlier blamed the Senate for “killing” the legislated wage hike bill. Abante said senators refused to convene a bicameral conference committee on the final night of the 19th Congress to resolve differences over wage hike amounts.

The Senate approved last year a P100 minimum wage increase for private sector workers, while the House pushed for a P200 hike.

Senate, House trade barbs

Senators yesterday blamed the House of Representatives for the 19th Congress’ failure to pass a legislated wage hike, saying the House wasted the opportunity to alleviate workers’ plight.

“We are back to square one. The House of Representatives wasted that opportunity!” Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada said in a Zoom interview with reporters yesterday.

Estrada said the senators “did their research” when the labor committee conducted hearings on the sustainability of giving minimum wage earners a P100 increase, the Senate version passed last year.

And yet the House refused to adopt the Senate version and insisted on its P200 increase version, which senators believed was at risk of being vetoed by the President.

“We decided on the P100 across the board increase last year. The House acted on this just two days before we adjourned sine die,” Estrada said.

“It only goes to show the House has no intention of adopting the Senate version. They should not blame the Senate about what we passed a year ago that they did not act on,” he added.

The legislated wage hike was not among the measures ratified during the last session day on June 11 before sine die adjournment, following the standoff on which amount the Congress will approve.

There was no bicameral conference committee held to reconcile the differing versions, with the Senate insisting that the House should just adopt the lower amount at P100 increase instead of its P200 hike version.

Sen. Joel Villanueva, the present Senate labor committee chair, said the House “clearly set the stage to ensure the wage hike bill’s failure.”

“It was dead on arrival because of the intransigence of some to have a measure that is more realistic and more acceptable to all stakeholders,” Villanueva said yesterday.

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri – who steered the passage of the wage hike bill when he was senate president – said he will refile the bill during the next 20th Congress. He said the Senate passed its P100 wage hike version on Feb. 19, 2024, while the House approved its P200 version a year later, or on June 4. — Helen Flores, Marc Jayson Cayabyab