Labor Group SENTRO Urges Gov’t To Take Actions for Lower Cost of Living
LABOR GROUP – SENTRO, a workers’ group, is calling on the Philippine government to lower the cost of living in the Philippines.
A lot of Filipinos are financially struggling now. Many were greatly affected by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Several businesses had to temporarily or permanently close as they were not able to cope with the demands of the pandemic.
The closure of businesses further resulted in the loss of jobs. Unfortunately, many of the employees who lost their jobs are breadwinners of their families. The Filipinos are also facing financial struggles due to the high costs of food and other basic needs now.
The series of oil price hikes in the country since January also affected the income of many people. The oil price hike is a global situation triggered by the ongoing tension between Ukraine and Russia.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) recently approved the increase in the prices of basic goods and commodities citing that the raw materials used in making the products also took an upward trend.
Amid the situation now, labor group SENTRO is urging the government to lower the cost of living in the Philippines. Based on a report in Philippine Star, SENTRO urges the government to crackdown overpricing of goods, lower the cost of electricity, and roll out service contracting for public transportation to mitigate the oil price hikes.
SENTRO believes that “with enough political will”, the government can easily do the aforementioned requests to lower the cost of living in the Philippines. The labor group also called for the abolition of the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) accusing them of failing the minimum wage earners.
Currently, RTWPB has yet to comment on the workers’ group’s call. More updates may be posted soon.
You may also visit – Raffy Tulfo Not in Favor of Shutting Down ABS-CBN
