DOLE-12 steps up monitoring on compliance with new wage order
GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Dec. 20 (PNA) -- The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in Region 12 has stepped up its monitoring on the compliance of private employers with the region’s new minimum wage rates.
Jessie dela Cruz, secretary of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB), said Tuesday they have launched another round of inspections on companies and commercial establishments in parts of the region to ensure the proper implementation of Wage Order No. RB XII-19, which took effect last Oct. 9.
The new wage order, which was approved by the board on Sept. 9, provided for a P15 to P20 increase in the daily wages of private workers in the region.
It raised the area’s floor pay to as high as P295 from the previous P275.
“Our labor laws compliance officers are currently conducting inspections to check if there are companies and commercial or business establishments that are not yet implementing the new wage rates,†dela Cruz said.
The official said the inspections or enforcement activities are focused on five priority industries in the region.
These are companies and establishments in security, manpower, manufacturing, construction and retail industries.
Aside from the regular inspections, he said they conduct surprise visits to employers that were subjects of complaints from their workers.
“We’re entertaining anonymous complaints from workers and we prioritize these companies for the inspections,†dela Cruz said.
Under the new wage order, workers in the non-agriculture sector received a P20 adjustment, bringing their daily wages to P295.
For those in agriculture and retail sectors, the RTWPB-12 raised the previous daily wage rate of P257 to P272.
Dela Cruz said they have not yet received any application from local companies and establishments for a one-year exemption on the implementation of the new wage order.
Based on the wage order’s approved implementing rules and regulations, he said concerned companies may apply for such exemption until Jan. 26, 2017.
He said companies that were severely affected by natural and man-made calamities like floods, earthquake and arson may seek for the one-year relief.
The applications would be subjected by the RTWPB-12 to stringent evaluation process, among them the analysis of the financial statements of the concerned employer, he added. (PNA)
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