House rejects Senate's P100 min wage hike; adjourns without raising daily wage

The House committee on labor and employment rejected Senator Joel Villanueva's proposal to adopt the Senate's version of the bill increasing the daily minimum wage for workers, leading to the adjournment sine die of the 19th Congress without ratifying the measure.

House Spokeswoman Priscilla Marie 'Princess' Abante said that senators refused to meet their counterparts in a bicameral conference committee to resolve differences over wage hike amounts, preventing lawmakers from reconciling differences on wage hike bills before the congressional session ended.

The Senate approved a P100 minimum wage hike for private-sector workers last year, while the House pushed for a P200 increase.

Abante emphasized that the Senate's refusal to convene the bicameral conference committee killed the possibility of raising the daily minimum wage by P200.

Villanueva argued that the Senate's version, considering socio-economic conditions and sector positions, may be more acceptable, but the House was ready to deliberate in good faith.

Malacañang stated that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will review the economic implications of the proposed wage increase.

Kilusang Mayo Uno criticized the failure to ratify the legislated wage hike as 'unacceptable' and 'unforgivable.'