Balanced wage-setting, incentives urged by ECOP

ECOP President Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. PHOTO BY: BENEDICT ABAYGAR, JR.

THE government should adopt policies that will reward companies that adopt new technologies and sustainability practices, and continue to uphold wage-setting at the regional level, the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) said on Wednesday.

In a resolution approved at the close of the 45th National Conference of Employers (NCE), the business group urged the government to implement balanced policies that would benefit both business owners and workers.

"[The] government, in partnership with social partners, must develop national resilience programs, social protection mechanisms and transition strategies that will support both workers and employers from technological, climate and geopolitical disruptions," the ECOP said.

It proposed incentives for businesses that integrate advanced technologies and sustainability practices, including subsidies to upskill workers.

"Because of new job scenarios, many jobs are mismatched, resulting in high underemployment," NCE Governor and Chairman Arturo Guerrero II said.

"Many people take jobs just to have employment, but their skills are not suitable for the job they are doing; they are overqualified," he noted.

Given an ongoing push to legislate across-the-board wage hikes, the ECOP also urged the government to promote minimum wage-setting mechanisms that consider productivity, market value of jobs and the financial capacity of businesses.

Guerrero reiterated the group's position that wage increases in the country should continue to be determined at the regional level instead of ordered by Congress.

"Increasing the minimum wage doesn't just affect large corporations; it also pulls in the informal economy, small businesses and even those in higher positions," he noted.

ECOP chief Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. has said that a reasonable minimum wage increase for Metro Manila workers, for example, would be P15 per day instead of the P150 across-the-board increase being pushed in Congress.

Employers also asked the government to encourage bipartism, tripartism and social dialogue to address workplace issues, particularly in improving job generation to ensure enterprise sustainability over the long term.

"[T]he government must strictly adhere to the principles of tripartism in considering appointment to tripartite bodies," it added.

Hosted by ECOP, the NCE is an annual event that convenes industry leaders, government officials, foreign investors, chambers of commerce and corporate executives to address employment-related matters.