The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) commends the President’s signing of the Republic Act No. 11701 (RA 11701), which grants a night shift differential pay to government and Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GOCC) employees. In the same vein, CHR also notes the recent move of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board to increase the minimum wage in the NCR and Western Visayas.

These efforts aim to restore the purchasing power of minimum wage workers in light of the increase in the prices of basic goods, commodities, and petroleum products. CHR is hopeful that these policies will enable workers, particularly the impoverished ones, to afford basic goods necessary for a dignified living conditions.

The RA 11701 shall grant night shift differential pay to government and GOCC employees at a rate not exceeding twenty percent (20%) of the hourly basic rate of employee. This move is a concrete recognition to the contribution of rank-and-file government employees in nation-building while. It also enhances their welfare as they toil tirelessly at the backstage of national affairs.

For the private and informal sector, the Wage Order granted an increase of PhP33 bringing the new minimum wage rate to PhP570 and PhP533 for workers in the non-agriculture and agriculture sectors. According to the Department of Labor and Employment, this is expected to protect around one million minimum wage earners in private establishments in the covered region from undue low wages.

Under the welfare and social justice provisions of the Constitution, the government is duty-bound to provide workers adequate protection and mechanisms to promote and satisfy the employment needs in their home country. More paramount is that such an employment be, above all, decent, just, and humane. The recent efforts to assuage the plight of workers is headway to a dignified and humane living wage. At the same time, it is crucial to supplement these with parallel efforts to stabilize the prices of goods and basic commodities. Strengthening programs that ensure basic services, which impact the daily life of workers, such as transportation and health services, are also essential complementary efforts.

CHR recognizes the efforts of the government in continuing to strike a balance between the interests of the employers and the employees given that our economy is still in the process of recovery from the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic and other compounding factors. We urge the incoming administration to continue to prioritize the plight and dignity of workers through sustainable programs that will also contribute to economic alleviation.