DOLE's Tolentino: Court, petitioners should explain on NCR P85-wage hike issue, too

Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Francis Tolentino on Saturday said both the court and the corporate petitioners against the P85-wage hike in Metro Manila should provide explanations to the public regarding their positions that led to the pausing of pay raises for minimum income earners.

Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, Tolentino said DOLE has been repeatedly asked about its efforts to help workers amid the wage hike standoff, but not the two petitioners who sought an injunction. The same could be said, Tolentino added, about the court which granted their plea.

"'Yung nakikita ko rito, ang natatanong lagi dito ay kami, kung ano ang aming ginagawa. Hindi po natatanong dito 'yung dalawang kumpanya, 'Bakit kayo ganyan? Bakit ninyo finile 'yan?' 'Di po natatanong 'yon… 'Di pa ata nai-interview 'yang mga 'yan," Tolentino said.

(What I notice here is that we are always the ones being questioned about what we are doing. No one is asking the two companies, 'Why are you doing this? Why did you file that?' No one asks them... It seems those parties haven't even been interviewed.)

He added that an explanation from the approving judge was also necessary, particularly regarding the specific grounds by which the injunction was granted.

"Gusto ko rin, paulit-ulit kong sinasabi since Day 1, sana ma-interview din si judge kasi siya 'yung naglabas niyan. Ano yung legal basis niya?" Tolentino added.

(What I want, and I've been saying this repeatedly since Day 1, is that I hope the judge gets interviewed, too, since she issued it. What was her legal basis?)

In July, the Pasig Regional Trial Court-Branch 152 issued a temporary restraining order on the implementation of the P85-minimum wage increase in Metro Manila.

In an eight-page order, Presiding Judge Marie Joyce Manongsong granted the petition filed by Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-II Builders, Inc.

Last week, the Pasig RTC issued a preliminary injunction against the wage increase upon the posting of a P10 billion bond.

In her order, Manongsong stated that the court found it "in the best interest of all stakeholders that the assailed wage order be temporarily put on pause."

Last Tuesday, several labor groups requested the Supreme Court to urgently act on an earlier petition asking it to junk a temporary restraining order (TRO) on the implementation of the wage hike

In a 20-page manifestation, labor groups asked the court to note that the Pasig RTC ordered a preliminary injunction on the implementation of the wage hike after petitioners posted a P10 billion bond. The preliminary injunction was issued the day that the TRO expired.

Tolentino said the DOLE continues to coordinate with its legal counsel, the Office of the Solicitor General, to challenge Pasig court's order.

Despite the active injunction, Tolentino noted that some employers are still voluntarily implementing the wage hike.

"Ako'y patuloy pa rin na nagpapasalamat doon sa gumagawa ng voluntary compliance. Alam na natin kahit may TRO walang magpe-prevent sa isang kumpanya, maliit man o malaki, na ipatupad ito at ine-encourage ko 'yon," Tolentino said.

(I remain deeply grateful to those who are voluntarily complying. We know that even with a TRO, nothing stops a company—whether small or large—from implementing the raise. I strongly encourage that.) — VDV, GMA News