'Ghosted again': Metro Manila workers dismayed over TRO on P85 minimum wage hike

Metro Manila workers expectedly expressed their disappointment after the implementation of the P85 minimum wage hike in the National Capital Region was suspended following the grant of a temporary restraining order sought by two construction firms in Pasig City.

"We've been ghosted again," cashier Joan Walog said in Filipino.

According to Bernadette Reyes' report on "24 Oras," Joan planned to add the initial P60 increase to the budget for her child's baby food.

"It’s really disappointing because with prices being so high, we were counting on that extra P60. If they deduct the P60 increase, then our overtime and hourly pay will be reduced as well," Joan said.

Production worker Rosalie Alhambra said the minimum wage increase should not have been declared only to be taken back.

“I wish they hadn’t announced a wage increase in the first place, so people wouldn't get their hopes up. The increase was already so small, and then they took it back—it feels so painful," Rosalie said in Filipino.

Another worker said the setback made her feel taken for granted.

"I might actually go through with resigning because the wage increase would have meant a lot to us," said Abbey, a cook.

The Pasig Regional Trial Court (RTC) issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the implementation of the wage hike on Thursday, granting the prayer of petitioners Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-II Builders, Inc.

The Kilusang Mayo Uno said the government must assert the wage order and said President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. should speak on the matter.

Labor lawyers have questioned the authority of the court to stop the wage hike through a TRO.

"The Department of Labor and the Regional Wage Board must assert their statutory authority to enforce that wage order. Bongbong Marcos really needs to speak up on this issue," KMU chairperson Jerome Adonis said.

According to Adonis, the temporary retraction of the P85 minimum wage increase is comparable to taking a kilo of rice away from a family’s daily budget.

"At the very least, you lose a kilo of rice every single day from your budget," Adonis said in Filipino.

An estimated 1.4 million minimum wage earners are projected to be affected by the TRO, prompting several labor groups—including KMU—to stage protests in the coming days, calling for the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to continue fighting for the wage increase.

The DOLE asserted that the wage increase should still be paid for the days worked before the issuance of the TRO.

"The workers already have a vested right to those earnings, so they shouldn't have to return them, Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino said.

"Especially today, since it's payday, no money should be taken back because when the payroll was prepared and received, there was no order from the National Wages and Productivity Commission suspending it yet," he added.

On Friday, hospital workers protested against the TRO through a noise barrage in front of the University of Santo Tomas (UST). –Lyjah Tiffany Bonzo/NB, GMA News