May 1, 2011. By past 5 in the afternoon, the protest march had reached the gates of Mendiola, the road that leads to the Presidential palace. The “Peace Arch” gates had been shut, and thousands of police from across Metro Manila and soldiers deployed from Southern Tagalog were ordered assembled behind barbed wires and barricades. An over-reaction and an exaggeration it was.

President Aquino refused to appear before the thousands of workers and supporters that day, even if he had earlier sat down with “moderate” labor groups and promised them some crumbs in consolation. In an insulting display of his real biases, a few days later, President Aquino indulged the national employers’ confederation and attended their banquet (similarly attended by representatives form the foreign chambers of commerce) and assured them that he will not support a substantial legislated nationwide across-the-board wage hike. In short, the President vowed to protect big businessmen’s greed for profits through the pressing down of wages.

Minimum wage in the National Capital Region (NCR) is stunted at a mere P404 a day. On the other hand, the daily cost of living for an ordinary family is pegged at almost P1,000 a day, making it barely possible for an ordinary family in NCR to make ends meet even when both parents are working. In the provinces, minimum wages are even lower, and even much lower for those working in the agriculture sector, even if the prices of many goods including processed foods and petroleum are more expensive in the provinces. In a blatantly ironic and tragic manifestation of the grave inequalities that pervade in the Philippines, the government, through the social welfare department, announced two days later that it will dole out rice subsidies–to farmers!

A recent survey showed that incidence of hunger in the country is at its highest in twelve years, and that more than half of the population rated themselves as poor.

Meanwhile, the productivity rate of Filipino workers actually increased over the past years, creating wealth for investors and capitalists. Business papers consistently report record billions in profits for companies the past years. Government reported that the economy grew by more than 7% in 2010. A research group had earlier correctly debunked the retrenchment and closure threats of companies saying that “Government data show that establishments in the country with total employment of 20 and over had combined profits of Php895.2 billion” and that a P125 nationwide wage hike will only cause a mere 15% cut in profits.

The demand for higher wages is thus not merely a whim of workers, but a just and timely demand for social justice that has been consistently denied them for decades under the ruling system. A P125 wage increase will not be sufficient to equitably distribute the wealth that the country collectively creates, but it will at least provide economic relief to millions of Filipinos. The present government’s rejection, even just of this simple demand, is a manifestation of its real character as merely an institution that preserves the status quo that serves the interests of a few, and thus justifies the people’s struggle for genuine social change.

More reading:
* Filipino workers must unite to expose and oppose the anti-worker US-Aquino regime
* Labor day outrage and paranoia
* Biggest show of protesters in May 1 ‘Day of Outrage’
* Mayo Uno: Hudyat ng mas matindi pang paglaban
* P13.35 too small a wage hike, employers should fight oil price hikes – KMU