Ang buhay ng mga manggagawa ay buhay na isang kahid, isang tuka. Klaro sa kanya na dapat ipatupad ang Php 85 Minimum Wage Hike, kahit na hindi pa rin ito sapat sa lahat ng kanyang pangangailangan.

Ngunit, kahit ang simpleng katotohanang ay nahaharap sa maraming batikos: mabigat daw para sa mga negosyante ang dagdag sahod. Paano naman daw ang mga maliliit na negosyo?

Mukhang kailangan magkalinawan ulit: Totoo ba na mas makakahamak kaysa makakatulong ang Minimum Wage Increase na Php 85 sa NCR?

CLAIM #1: Mas matatamaan ang maliliit na negosyo, hindi ang malalaking korporasyon dahil 99.6% ng mga negosyo ay MSMEs kung saan binubuo ng mga ito ang 67% ng mga trabaho.

PERO: Owner- o family-operated ang mayoridad ng micro-enterprises. Halimbawa ang mga tindahan, karinderya, manininda, atbp. Sila ay napapaloob bilang mga BMBEs na maaaring maging Qualified BMBE na exempted sa Minimum Wage Law.

VERDICT: FALSE.

CLAIM #2: Mas mataas pa sa inflation rate ang Php85 dagdag sahod dahil 12.2% wage hike ang Php85, samantalang nasa 6.2% lang ang inflation rate noong July 2026.

PERO: Hindi kinuwenta nito ang inflation rate simula sa huling pagtaas ng Minimum Wage. July 2025, Php695 ang Minimum Wage sa NCR. Kaltasin ang inflation sa mga nakaraang buwan na walang dagdag sahod at Php466 na ang katumbas nito ngayon.

VERDICT: FALSE.

CLAIM #3: Papatayin ng Php85 Wage Hike ang dami ng trabaho, lalo na para sa young& “unskilled” workers dahil sa datos na nagsasabing bumababa ng 7%-11% ang employment ng young & “unskilled” workers tuwing may minimum wage increase.

PERO: Hindi automatic na katumbas ng Minimum Wage increases ang malawakang pagpatay sa trabaho, at napakita na ito ng international research. At, kung ang mababang sahod job-generating, bakit laganap ang unemployment, underemployment, at mababang kalidad ng trabaho?

VERDICT: FALSE.

CLAIM #4: Tataas ang inflation rate kapag nagkaroon ng minimum wage increase dahil tataas ang business costs at mapupuwersahan mga negosyo na magtaas ng presyo, lalo na kung mas mabilis ang pagtaas ng sahod kaysa sa productivity rate ng manggagawa.

PERO: Base sa datos ng 2012-2022, tumaas na ng 28.9% ang Labor Productivity Rate, habang ang tinaas ng minimum wage sa NCR ay 20.7%. Samantalang, sa panahon na iyon, tinaas ng inflation rate ang consumer price index ng 35.3%. Tumaas ang productivity at inflation, pero naiwan ang sahod ng manggagawa.

VERDICT: FALSE.

CLAIM #5: Ang Php85 Minimum Wage Hike ay mas mataas kaysa sa historical norm dahil ang mga nakaraan na malakihang Wage Hike ay Php15 hanggang Php53 lamang. Dagdag pa, ay dinahilan ito ng pagtaas ng poverty incidence.

PERO: Ang dagdag sahod mula Php695 papuntang Php780 ay katumbas ng 12.23% lamang. Mas malaki ang rate nito sa kasaysayan: 12.88% noong 1999, hanggang 39.06% noong 1989. Magkalapit lang din ang rate sa dapat naging dagdag sahod ngayon sa 2000 na 11.86%.

Nakakabahala ring ang pag-ugnay ng poverty incidence sa minimum wage increase, na para bang ito lamang ang nagtutulak sa manggagawa patungo sa kahirapan.

VERDICT: FALSE.

FINAL VERDICT:

Hindi totoo na walang epekto sa ekonomiya ang dagdag sahod. Kaya mainam na gamitin ang kaalaman sa ekonomiya para siguraduhin na may disenteng buhay ang mga manggagawa.

Pero hindi solusyon ang pananakot at pagpapanatiliing mahirap ang mga manggagawa para mabuhay ang mga negosyo.

LEARN Response to World Bank Announcement that Philippines Reached “Upper Middle Income” Status

Recently, the Philippines has been classified by the World Bank as an “Upper Middle Income” country. We now join a growing number of developing economies that have a GNI per capita between $4,496 and $13,935. While the Marcos Jr. administration maximizes the opportunity to announce that its policies and governance works, the everyday reality of working people tells a different story — a story of poverty, insecurity, chronic stress, and terrible public services.

Claims by Finance Secretary Frederick Go that “The Philippines’ transition to an upper middle income country is an affirmation of the reforms and policies that the government has consistently pursued to strengthen our economy and to create more opportunities for our people,” needs to be carefully scrutinized.

The Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) cautions against any premature celebration of Philippine “progress”. Going beyond statistics and impressive figures of GDP/GNI growth, progress must also be measured in improvements to the quality of life that Filipinos experience.

According to the Social Weather Station, last March 2026, self-rated poverty was a dismal 52%. Self-rated food poverty meanwhile remained troubling at 42%. Workers still suffer from poverty wages. The “historic” wage hike in the NCR that DOLE Secretary Tolentino bragged about is a pathetic 85 pesos increase — in a further insult to workers, this would be implemented in two tranches. This is nowhere near the minimum 200 peso wage hike that labor unions are pushing for wage recovery. To hear that the country is getting wealthier while workers still cannot recover the value of their wages — much less actually increase its real value —is difficult to accept. The present situation only deepens distrust at the government and the big businesses that profit while the majority suffer.

The government’s claim of success reveals that it is severely out of touch with the everyday realities that the majority of Filipinos experience. The celebratory tone brings to mind statements by government executives that the worsening traffic paralyzing our cities should be seen as a “positive sign” of economic growth. These pronouncements, heard from the previous Aquino III and also the Marcos Jr. administration, are so alien and different to our actual lives.

LEARN strongly doubts that the people stuck in traffic, the riders struggling to breathe in clogged underpasses, and the commuters desperate for a ride home actually believe that things are improving. Until the supposed “prosperity” of the nation is actually felt by the majority through proactive policies such as a living wage, public employment, and genuine industrial policy, claims that we are getting richer are hard to believe. Perhaps the people living in Forbes Park and BGC are doing well, but the rest of the country definitely isn’t.

LEARN Statement of Dismay over the Recent 85 Peso NCR Wage Hike

In celebration, DOLE recently announced a “historic” wage hike for Metro Manila Workers. Declaring this “achievement” as the highest increase ever approved for the capital region, the labor department proudly states that this will benefit around 1.1 million minimum wage earners in the NCR. While the government, and no doubt employers, are celebrating this supposed “historic” step for workers, the 85 pesos increase is nothing compared to the historic crisis of living that working families face in this country.

How can the “historic” wage increase be enough in a country that has yet to recover fully from the massive inflation triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran? Is 85 pesos enough to make us forget the long lines for ayuda, the jeepney and taxis running out of gas on the road? Will it be enough to pull families drowning in debt just to afford food and basic necessities?

For the Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN), the wage hike is nowhere near what workers in Metro Manila need to survive with dignity. The fact that the 85 peso increase will be done in two tranches is also an insult to struggling workers. Looking at the history of wages in the Philippines, this wage hike is simply a continuation of a history of injustice, poverty, and hunger for Filipino workers.

Workers do not need spare change, we need a serious wage hike and a reform of our wage setting mechanisms. We echo the calls for a legislated national wage hike. The proposed 200 peso increase is the right first step towards addressing the poverty wages workers have been enduring for decades.

It is also clear that the regional wage boards have failed in their mandate to provide fair and living wages for workers. The fact that they are no doubt patting their backs in celebration over the pathetic 85 peso hike is all the proof we need to back this claim. The regional wage boards must be abolished and a national wage setting mechanism be reintroduced if we are serious about providing sufficiently for workers.”

LEARN-SENTRO Statement on Congressional Developments during Vice President Duterte’s Impeachment Vote

By our Constitution, the Philippine Congress is supposedly the reflection of the popular will of our people. Through the Senate and the Lower House, our elected representatives are expected to serve the interests of the citizens that they serve. Beyond popularity and political opportunism, the “people’s representatives” are expected to think, act, and position with the best interests of their constituencies at heart. 

The Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) and the Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) express great alarm at the political developments this May 11th, 2026. What transpired in the halls of the Senate is a betrayal of the people’s trust. We are left with a divided Congress. As the saying goes, this divided house derails all attempts at accountability through institutional channels.

While we commend the House of Representatives for its principled stand for constitutional process, we are worried that forces are at work to paralyze accountability before the Senate. The shameless behavior of the dishonorable Bato de la Rosa is especially insulting to Filipino workers. Following his months-long absence from his responsibilities as a Senator, his attendance just to vote on the Senate’s leadership change demonstrates that self-interest and self-preservation are the only factors that matter to him. 

His continued acceptance of a 300,000-peso monthly salary despite his 6-month absence says everything we need to know about his character, and the moral compass of those that remain allied with him. LEARN and SENTRO condemn the brazen political manoeuvre of the Duterte Senators not for truth, but only to save their political patron. 

Given the political changes in the Senate, the institution is now hard-pressed to demonstrate where its true loyalty rests — is it in genuine, principled service of the people, or will it be for opportunism, and service to political allies? 

Now that the articles of impeachment have passed the Lower House, we believe that the Senate is now duty-bound to fulfill its constitutionally mandated role to immediately convene an impeachment trial. The allegations against Vice President Duterte demand answers. We Filipinos deserve answers. We deserve to know whether or not the second-highest official of the land has betrayed the public’s trust by robbing the people she claims she is serving. 

Contrary to (dis)honorable representative Marcoleta’s assertion, the people that attended the impeachment proceedings are not “hakot.” They are the representatives of the social movements, trade unions, people’s organizations, church and civil society groups, and the millions of workers who are watching the impeachment proceedings. 

All eyes are now on the Senate. The same people who attended the impeachment vote today are a fraction of the workers, social movements, and citizens who will continue to mobilize for accountability. We would like to remind our lawmakers that the people are no strangers to forcing political change, should our institutions fail us. Those who will stand on the side of truth and accountability will be remembered by history. Those who will vote for themselves and personal loyalty will earn the people’s disgust.

Statement of LEARN on President Marcos Jr.’s Acknowledgement of an Oil Crisis 

Almost a month since geopolitical tensions in the Middle East exploded into another war between Iran and the United States and Israel, the Philippine government continues to be sluggish in addressing Filipino’s urgent concerns. As motorists — from the well-off SUV driving middle classes, to the motorcycle riding working masses — began a mad rush to gas stations, the government continued to pretend that everything was normal. 

No less than president Marcos Jr. himself repeatedly said for weeks that there was no crisis in our oil supply, until he suddenly declared a “national energy emergency”. 

With an unreliable government and rising pressures on the cost of living, it is understandable for Filipinos to respond with a wide range of emotions. One of these is to turn on each other for the perceived unevenness of the government’s relief programs. However, to blame the working poor for “ayuda” or to demand the same for the middle classes misses the point. 

The entire nation is struggling, and the precariousness of the “privileged” middle class may be a sign that they share many similarities with the working poor after all. Perhaps the working class is broad enough to include the professional graphic designer, BPO worker, and the tricycle driver. Targeted “ayuda” programs are necessary, but they are insufficient in the absence of a comprehensive package of programs and reforms. 

Instead of arguing who deserves assistance more, LEARN believes that the people’s energy is better spent pushing the State for a strategic response to the present crisis. Together with trade unions, social movements, and civil society, we join the call to review the oil deregulation law and improve the government’s ability to directly intervene in economic decision-making. Doing so could provide the government with an important tool for mitigating the pressure caused by supply disruptions and shocks. 

As we continue to provide emergency relief to transport workers and low-income households, it is important that we ensure food security by providing subsidies and adequate services to farmers who also face rising fertilizer prices due to the supply shock.

Beyond short-term ayuda programs, we believe that it is time for the government to develop a serious public employment program, and actually take steps to formulate the agro-industrial policy required to generate good, quality jobs. Given our vulnerability to the climate crisis and disruptions to oil supplies, these policies must be geared towards developing and expanding renewable energy sources. 

As these short and long-term interventions require funding, the move to suspend excise taxes might do more harm than good. Rather than cut existing funding sources, LEARN argues that a wealth tax for the country’s ultra wealthy would go far in raising the revenues to adequately support state support for all Filipinos.

Finally, the declaration of a national energy emergency is a recognition of the current crisis, but it raises more questions than answers. To declare an emergency without a clear plan invites the possibility of abusing emergency powers. In the wake of the unresolved flood control scandal, it is doubtful if Filipinos can trust the administration with this increased discretion. Furthermore, existing laws and policies already give the government the mandate to implement many of the actions that the emergency declaration calls for. Why then is the declaration necessary? 

Whatever national strategies will be developed must be done through a consultative, people-centric approach. Instead of ambiguous announcements of emergency power, we call for the government to convene a national summit with trade unions, civil society, and the business sector. Developing responses with the active participation of the people bearing the brunt of the crisis will help ensure that interventions are relevant to the people’s needs, and accurately reflect our concerns and interests.

History is filled with struggles, wars, and revolts against poverty, oppression, and for national liberation, even social revolution. In many of these battles the organized working classes have played a pivotal role in pushing for democracy and wealth redistribution. Because of our bias for justice, fairness, and popular power, we Filipino workers found ourselves part of the 1986 revolution that toppled a dictatorship and restored our formal democratic institutions.

40 years since, it is clear that the fight for democracy and wealth redistribution are far from over. As we commemorate the 40th anniversary of the EDSA People Power Revolution, the Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) and Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) calls for us to draw courage from a simple fact of history — Filipinos are patient. But when we snap, we have the power to topple presidents and bring down dynasties.

For two decades, Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and his cronies abused and stole from the people. Yet, his reign could not last forever. Years of organized opposition and the people’s frustration eventually exploded into a popular revolt that gave way to our current democratic order. Yet, the years after 1986 showed both the great lengths and limits of our people’s patience.

Using the excuse of “De-Marcosification” the ruling elites embraced a policy of rampant privatization and the embrace of transnational and multinational corporations. At the same time, political dynasties — both pro and anti-Marcos — tightened their grip over the Philippine archipelago. As a result, Filipinos saw little improvement in our quality of life. Poverty, unemployment, inhumane working conditions, contractualization, unlivable wages, bootlicking of foreigners, failing industries, harassment of organized workers and government critics, and the killings of any who dare speak against the powers that be — these continued to be the state of the nation, even decades under democracy.

With little difference under dictatorship or democracy, it is unsurprising that in a single lifetime we saw two EDSA revolutions (or three, depending on who’s counting), the presidency of the murderous Duterte, and the election of another Ferdinand Marcos as president.

40 years after EDSA, the lesson is clear. Regardless of whoever sits in authority – as long as the system keeps power and wealth concentrated to a select few — very little will change. We must overhaul our political and economic system to ensure that power, ownership, and production are for the benefit of the people, not the elite.

The massive protests during the height of the 2025 flood control scandal shows us that the people’s patience is once again running thin. Whether the movement against corruption will grow into a political force against the system will depend on many of the forces and people commemorating the EDSA revolution today. To ensure that the people’s rage and frustration can feed a politics of transformation, SENTRO and LEARN echo the following political demands:

The end to all political dynasties, so that power can no longer be accumulated by any single family against the detriment of the nation;
The end to corruption in government, through punishment of the corrupt and the assurance that no official could ever steal from public coffers;
The redistribution of wealth, through living wages, the full protection of workers, and the people’s enjoyment of quality public services such as healthcare, accessible education, and affordable housing.

40 years after EDSA I, the struggle for liberation against the ruling elites continues. Let those that profit from the people’s poverty and oppression remember that Filipinos are extremely patient. But that patience has limits.

The US empire continues to cast a long shadow over the people of Latin America. Since the Monroe doctrine, to clandestine machinations during the Cold War and beyond, the struggle for liberation in this continent has always been a struggle against both local elites and the United States. In this context, democracy is not just a matter of process, it is a question of substance. Who holds power? The people? A colonial master? Dictators who claim to speak on behalf of their nation? For Latin American workers and social movements, answering this question continues to shape the continent’s history. Today, the brazen acts of US imperialism brings this question to the fore once again.

The Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) and Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) strongly condemn the recent abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and the First Lady Cilia Flores by United States forces last night, January 3rd. In attacking the Venezuelan capital and kidnapping its head of state, the United States has dealt a grievous blow not only to the principle of sovereignty and independence. The attack is also a major assault on the rules-based international order. This very order was formed in the wake of two devastating world wars sparked by nations operating on the principle of might makes right. Viewed in this light, the American operation in Caracas is simultaneously an issue of democracy (Trump acted unilaterally without authority from Congress), colonialism, and geopolitical tension.

For LEARN and SENTRO, the impunity with which American officials planned and conducted the abduction of a head of state revives the specter of colonialism that defines the US’ relationship with Latin American countries.

Despite its flaws, the Bolivarian experiment is still an example of state-led development that runs against neoliberal orthodoxy. With Trump saying that the US will “run Venezuela”, we can expect that Washington plans to demolish the public sector and enforce neoliberal policies on the country. This will inevitably give free reign to the private sector, especially transnational US corporations, at the expense of working people.

What has transpired before the world is nothing more than a blatant attempt at regime change to secure the political and economic interests of the US empire.

More dangerously, the American example might encourage other powers to violate the international system governing the behavior of States. If the United States could simply remove a head of state in a county it views as under its sphere of influence, what’s stopping continued Russian aggression in Ukraine? Chinese moves in Taiwan? What does the American example mean for the thousands of political exiles that their emboldened governments might attack? If a sitting president can be arrested by another nation, how much more dissident journalists, unionists, and activists?

It is for this reason that LEARN and SENTRO are greatly worried by the repercussions of this unilateral American action. Despite the obvious failures of multilateral institutions, a retreat from the noble vision of the United Nations is detrimental to democracy, human rights, and the spirit of human solidarity.

For the international trade union movement, the events in Latin American must be viewed with great concern. We must view this as intimately connected with attempts to silence workers and suppress self-determination in Ukraine, Myanmar, and the present maritime tensions in Southeast Asia.

To borrow from Vaclav Havel, when the dignity of workers is crushed in Venezuela, does that violence not echo across borders, striking the dignity of the working class everywhere?

We call on workers, social movements, and all peace-loving peoples to condemn the US action. We also call for the reform of the existing multilateral order to reflect the original vision articulated in the foundation of the United Nations.