Labor organizations in Negros Occidental pushing for the abolition of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board should bring the matter to Congress, Labor Regional Director Ponciano Ligutom said yesterday.

About 5,000 workers, who marched down the main streets of Bacolod City in three rallies during the 126th Labor Day celebration Tuesday called for the abolition of the RTWPB, saying it has become “useless”.

Ligutom said that while the Department of Labor respects their sentiments it is not easy to abolish RTWPB as it was created by a law.

RTWPB labor representative Wennie Sancho, said labor organizations should ask the help of Congressmen to repeal Republic Act 6727 that created the wage board.

Once RA 6727 is repealed, congress will be the one to issue the legislative wage to standardize salary increases in the country, he said.

Sancho said labor representatives at the RTWPB did all they can for the passage of a just wage hike, but the problem, is that they are outnumbered when voting for wage increases is done.

The RTWPB recently announced a P12 wage hike in Western Visayas, which, labor organizations claim, is not enough with the increasing prices of basic commodities.*APN

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