Labor coalition seeks faster action on P85 NCR wage hike dispute
MANILA, Philippines — A labor coalition has urged the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to help speed up a pending Supreme Court case involving an earlier P85 minimum wage increase in Metro Manila.
In a statement Sunday, October 18, Sonny Matula, chair of NAGKAISA, called on the government to submit its legal comment as soon as possible, saying workers are still waiting for issues surrounding Wage Order NCR-27 to be resolved.
The wage order granted an P85 daily increase in two tranches: P60 beginning July 25 and another P25 on Jan. 20, 2027.
Its implementation was halted after employers challenged the order before lower courts. The Supreme Court is now considering a petition questioning the court orders that blocked its implementation.
Employer-respondents Readycon Trading and Construction Corp., R-II Builders Inc. and the Alliance of Philippine Fishing Federations Inc. have already filed their consolidated comment and opposition.
Petitioners led by KAMANGGAGAWA Party-list, along with NAGKAISA-affiliated labor groups, submitted a motion seeking permission to file a reply and their accompanying reply on October 12.
The OSG, representing the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-NCR and the National Wages and Productivity Commission, earlier sought a 30-day extension until October 26 to submit its comment.
NAGKAISA urged the OSG to file before that deadline to help move the case forward.
Workers seek wage differentials
A newer wage order, NCR-28, granted a P60 daily increase effective September 26, raising Metro Manila's minimum wage to P755 for nonagricultural workers and P718 for workers in agriculture and certain small establishments.
NAGKAISA said the new order does not settle workers' claims arising from NCR-27, particularly for the period from July 25 to September 25.
The coalition estimates that a worker entitled to the full P60 increase for 54 compensable working days during that period could be owed P3,240 in wage differentials.
Applied to an estimated 1.1 million minimum wage workers in Metro Manila, NAGKAISA placed the potential amount at P3.564 billion. The coalition stressed that the figure is only an estimate and not a final award.
"These figures illustrate the potential economic significance of the dispute. They are not presented as final awards," Matula said.
The coalition also said the case raises a broader legal question over whether Regional Trial Courts can restrain wage orders issued under the Wage Rationalization Act.
NAGKAISA cited Article 126 of the Labor Code, which prohibits courts and other bodies from issuing injunctions or temporary restraining orders against proceedings before the National Wages and Productivity Commission or regional wage boards.
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