Minimum wage earners resorting to borrowing to make ends meet amid rising costs

The increase in the prices of basic goods are forcing minimum wage workers to borrow money just to make ends meet.

According to Sandra Aguinaldo’s “24 Oras” report on Wednesday, employers said they could not afford wage increases as they too had been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“'Pag nagsabay sabay po kasi yung bayaran at pangangailangan yun po talagang maso-short ka kaya bago ka po ulit sumahod may utang ka na po,” construction worker Diño Nervar said.

(Our income was not enough due to the bills and the needs at the same time. We have debt before we receive our income again.)

“Yung sahod ko po kasi nasa P6,981 po kinsenas ngayon po pagkakasyahin ko po yun para sa pamilya ko yung budget ko po araw araw and then yung pagkain ko po at pamasahe. Kapos na din po kasi pero kailangan talaga magbudget,” Jonalyn Tecson, a minimum wage earner, said.

(My salary is P6,981 every 15th of the month. I need to budget it for my family every day and then my food and fare. It is not enough but you really need to budget it.)

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III  admitted that the P537 minimum wage for Metro Manila was too small.

Several labor groups have called for a wage hike after transport groups pushed for a minimum fare increase following the consecutive oil price hike.

Bello said there were some factors that needed to be considered before raising wages.

“Personally, talagang medyo maliit na ‘yung P537 dito sa Metro Manila. Pero, ang isang pinakamahalagang i-consider natin ay kaya ba ng mga employers?” Bello said.

(Personally, the P537 income is quite small here in Metro Manila. But, one of the most important things we consider is whether employers can afford it?)

“You have to understand the position of the wage board. Kasi ang number one diyan is the economic factor, kaya ba? Kasi madali lang namang magbigay eh. Kailangan talaga ng manggagawa ito eh, kulang na ang suweldo nila, pero kaya ba ng employer?” he added.

(You have to understand the position of the wage board. Because the number one factor there is the economic factor.  It can be easily given to them. The workers really need it, their salary is low, but can the employer afford it?)

The Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands (CCPI) said many businesses would not be able to afford the wage hike since many are affected by the pandemic, noting that it is better to restore the country’s economy before implementing it.

“Many of businesses have closed down, have shut down and are having difficulty trying to survive. So to burden them now with the increase of wages you just make it almost impossible for them to open up again and employ people,” president of the CCPI Jose Luis Yulo said.

Yulo said that there were several businesses and industries that thrived during the pandemic including hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and construction companies which handle government projects.

“The government can also identify because the government knows based on the income tax they filed who made better prior the pandemic,” Yulo said.

“And the government can just induce them and cajole them to help the economy to recover by maybe expanding more, by maybe investing more and maybe even employ more people and thereby making the economy move a turn,” he added. —Richa Noriega/NB, GMA News