Small, medium businesses to suffer in case of minimum wage increase –Concepcion

Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion III warned that small and medium enterprises would experience difficulties if the minimum wage was increased.

During Monday's Laging Handa public briefing, Concepcion explained that big companies could provide additional salaries. But this may not be possible for small and medium businesses and those recovering from the pandemic.

“Yung mas malaking korporasyon mas may kaya. Pero yung small to medium enterprises yun mahihirapan kasi sila talaga ang tinamaan,” he said.

(Big companies can provide the higher minimum wage. But small to medium enterprises would find it difficult because they've been badly affected.)

“Dito naman sa mga negosyante galing sa tourism sector kababangon lang ‘yan e. Halos two years walang negosyo so bumabangon lang sila. We have to give them time,” he added.

(The entrepreneurs in the tourism sector are just starting to recover. They've had no business for two years. They are just recovering. We have to give them time.)

Concepcion suggested that we first wait and see what develops from the proposed suspension of the excise tax on oil, the cash aid programs, and other government measures designed to ease the impact of increasing prices.

Furthermore, the steep increase in fuel and basic goods prices might be temporary.

On Friday, labor unions alliance Unity for Wage Increase Now! held a rally at the National Capital Region Wage Board to press for the approval of their petition for a P750 minimum salary.

Meanwhile, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III ordered Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards across the country to review minimum wages.

Bello acknowledged that the current P537 daily minimum wage in the NCR may no longer be enough to cover commodities such as food, electricity, and water bills.

Malacañang supported Bello's review of the country's minimum wage. — DVM, GMA News