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SOLON PUSHES FOR MINIMUM WAGE POLICY REFORM

Positive discipline, cooperation, and consensus are key – Rep. Belaro

House Committee on Economic Affairs Member Congressman Salvador B. Belaro, Jr. issues statement in relation to today’s public hearing of the National Capital Region Wage Board
 
Here we go again. Another round of wage board hearings. The result of this, whether or not you favor any side of the competing interests, is predictable.
 
Most likely, either of two things will happen at the end of the process: part of or all of the current cost of living allowance will be transferred to basic wage or the COLA will be increased but the basic wage will stay the same.
 
Meanwhile, many are of the notion that in this day and age, every household should have only one breadwinner.
 
Frankly, that is as unfair to the breadwinner as denying that breadwinner a decent wage.
 
However, it would also be unfair to force the employer to pay for the wage of two persons when only one person is doing the work.
 
Simply put, it takes two minimum wage breadwinners to give their household an income that would be just enough to barely make ends meet these days. Three wage earners would give poor households the boost out of poverty and into the middle class.
 
Largely forgotten whenever the minimum wage issue is tackled are the middle class. The middle class also have hardships. They and the OFWs are the backbone of our country's economy. They stand most to gain from the comprehensive tax reform nearing realization.
 
We must also reform our country's minimum wage policy. We need to apply positive discipline so companies will realize they have more to gain by voluntarily complying with the law instead of having inspectors checking up on them. With positive discipline, businesses should not have to resort to bribing inspectors or denying their employees their rightful wages.
 
Let us put in place cooperation and consensus, which are more productive than class struggle and conflict.
 
We can achieve more with minimum wage reform through positive discipline, cooperation, and consensus than the tedious incremental process of this regional wage board system.

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