HIGHER pay awaits minimum wage earners and domestic workers in Northern Mindanao (NorMin) after its Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) approved increasing the minimum wage in the region.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said the RTWPB in Northern Mindanao issued Wage Order No. RX-21 granting a pay hike of P25 upon its effectivity and another P15-P22 effective December 16, 2022.
Bello thanked the wage board for resolving with dispatch the petitions for wage adjustments in its jurisdiction, adding that around 152,924 workers in private establishments and 54,851 domestic workers are expected to benefit from the minimum wage increases.
The previous wage order for workers in private establishments took effect on November 1, 2018; while the wage order for domestic workers took effect on January 1, 2020.
After implementation of the wage tranches, the new minimum wage rates in the cities of Cagayan de Oro, Iligan, Malaybalay, Valencia, Gingoog, El Salvador, and Ozamis and the municipalities of Tagoloan, Villanueva, Jasaan, Opol, Maramag, Quezon, Manolo Fortich, and Lugait are P405 for the non-agriculture sector and P393 for the agriculture sector.
Meanwhile, the new minimum wage rate in the cities of Oroquieta and Tangub and the municipalities of Laguindingan, Mambajao, Balingasag, and all other areas, including retail and service establishments employing not more than ten workers, are P390 for the non-agriculture sector and P378 for the agriculture sector.
The Board also issued RBX-DW-03 granting a monthly wage increase of P500 for domestic workers bringing the new monthly minimum wage rate in the region to P4,500 for cities and first-class municipalities and P3,500 for other municipalities.
The issued wage orders will be submitted to the National Wages and Productivity Commission for its review.
After being affirmed by the Commission, the wage orders will be published in a newspaper of general circulation and shall take effect 15 days after publication.
