Labor Groups Fight to Save P85 Wage Hike in Court Battle Over Minimum Pay

Labor groups across Metro Manila are fighting back in court to restore the P85 daily minimum wage hike that a Pasig RTC order has suspended, leaving thousands of workers and their families in limbo as daily expenses for rice, transport, and school supplies continue to climb.

Workers Push Back Against the Suspended Wage Order

Various labor groups have formally filed their opposition to the Pasig City Regional Trial Court's order suspending the P85 daily minimum wage increase recently implemented by the Department of Labor and Employment. The NAGKAISA Labor Coalition said their move is a declaration that workers will not remain silent while a legally issued wage order is put on hold through litigation initiated by Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-11 Builders Inc., which claimed that the wage hike would increase expenses and cause layoffs.

The coalition filed an "Urgent Motion for Leave to Intervene with Attached Answer-In-Intervention and Urgent Motion to Lift/Dissolve the Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and Status Quo Order" before Pasig RTC Branch 152. Workers' groups trooped to the DOLE central office in Intramuros, Manila yesterday to express their opposition to the TRO. Labor and progressive groups protested outside the Pasig RTC yesterday and demanded the lifting of the court order.

Everyday Families Feel the Freeze on Take-Home Pay

The suspended wage hike hits ordinary Filipino households hardest, where minimum wage earners stretch every peso across rising costs for rice at the sari-sari store, daily jeepney and tricycle fares, and school supplies for children. With the increase frozen by the court, families in barangays across the National Capital Region face another month of tight budgets, delaying small dreams like a better fiesta meal or extra money for Pasko gifts.

Many workers rely on bayanihan spirit among kapitbahay to get by, but the hold on the two-tranche P85 package means less money for household needs that directly affect health and education. The Pasig RTC issued a status quo ante order on Thursday, July 30, suspending the wage hike and restoring old pay rates days after the first tranche took effect July 25. This leaves families wondering how long the legal battle will keep the modest relief out of reach.

The suspension of the wage adjustment arrives at a moment when Metro Manila households already navigate a narrowing margin between earnings and essentials, where gradual rises in staple costs and commuting fares steadily chip away at what a daily paycheck can cover for working families spread across dense barangays.

Because the status quo ante order resets pay to pre-July 25 levels, employers face the practical question of whether to adjust future disbursements or attempt recovery of the brief tranche already issued, creating uneven practices from one workplace to the next and leaving workers uncertain about their next pay cycle as they coordinate with neighbors on shared rides or sari-sari credit.

Protecting the Integrity of Tripartism and the Labor Code

NAGKAISA said the employer petition seeks to stop a wage increase that was approved after the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region completed consultations, public hearings and deliberations required under the Labor Code. The labor groups stressed that the wage order is the product of a lawful tripartite process where labor, employers and government were heard.

Sonny Matula, chairman of NAGKAISA and national president of the Federation of Free Workers, said: "This intervention is about defending not only the P85 wage increase but the integrity of the tripartite wage determination process itself. Once a duly issued wage order can be frozen with little resistance, every future wage victory becomes vulnerable to the same attack." Matula added: "To allow the continued suspension of the wage order is, in effect, to legalize the snatching of the workers' hard-earned victory on the P85 wage hike. After workers fought through the lawful wage determination process and secured a modest increase, they now face the prospect of seeing that victory withheld through prolonged legal proceedings."

The protesters argued that the court has no jurisdiction over minimum wage orders issued by the RTWPB. Partido Lakas ng Masa chairman Leody de Guzman said the Labor Code bars courts from interfering with wage orders issued by wage boards, warning that labor groups would mount stronger protests if the suspension remains in place. SENTRO secretary general Josua Mata said: "The real solution is not to freeze workers' wages — it is to legislate a national living wage. Until that happens, employers and the courts must respect the law as it stands. Workers cannot be denied even the limited protections they have today."

Tripartism brings labor, employers, and government together to shape wage orders through structured talks and hearings, producing outcomes that reflect negotiated balance rather than unilateral decree; when a court steps in to halt such an order, it undercuts the very forum designed to give each side a voice and risks turning wage setting into a matter of litigation instead of consensus.

The Labor Code explicitly channels wage disputes away from regular courts and toward the wage boards themselves, so this challenge could establish a pathway for similar employer petitions in other regions, potentially weakening the regional boards' authority and making future wage adjustments more vulnerable to repeated legal pauses across the country.

DOLE, OSG, and Malacañang Weigh In on the Court Fight

The groups welcomed the manifestation of the Office of the Solicitor General before the RTC seeking the immediate lifting of the TRO on the NCR wage order, but criticized what they described as the absence of leadership from the DOLE. Labor groups said: "The OSG is doing its job in court. But where is the DOLE secretary? Secretary Francis Tolentino was quick to wrongly portray this measly, two-tranche P85 wage increase as 'historic.' Now that employers are attacking the very wage order his department championed, workers deserve to see the country's top labor official in court leading its defense — not leaving the fight entirely to government lawyers."

Tolentino maintained that the DOLE is one with the workers' fight, adding that the department continuously supports the wage hike and remains confident that the issue will be resolved through due process. Tolentino said: "I am your ally in tripartism. I am your ally in increasing the workers' salary. I am your ally in pushing for the dignity of every Filipino worker." Malacañang press officer Claire Castro said the administration is preparing to answer the TRO and defend the wage hike. Akbayan Rep. Percy Cendaña said: "Workers are being robbed of P85 every day," urging the court to immediately lift the order.

Tax Reform Bill HB 10451 Offers Another Path to Worker Relief

Alongside the court battle over wages, Congress is considering House Bill 10451 under President Marcos' tax reform agenda, which could give fixed-income earners an additional net take-home pay of P1,250 per month and save P15,000 in annual taxes once enacted. Rep. Toby Tiangco said: "In the proposed bill, workers will no longer be paying income tax if their annual taxable income is P350,000 and lower. Salaried employees who receive more than this amount will also benefit in terms of saving up P15,000 in taxes per year."

Tiangco made the projection following the President's call for Congress — the Senate included — to increase the annual income tax exemption threshold of workers from P250,000 to P350,000. He has filed House Bill 10451 for purposes of giving salaried workers relief from soaring prices. This parallel effort shows how lawmakers are looking at multiple tools to ease burdens on minimum wage families while the wage order remains suspended.

Next Steps in the Pasig RTC and Beyond

The intervention filing sets the stage for further hearings at Pasig RTC Branch 152, where labor groups will argue for lifting the TRO and restoring the wage order. Possible outcomes include the court dissolving the status quo order, allowing the P85 increase to resume, or extending the suspension while appeals move forward. Labor coalitions have signaled they will continue protests and legal steps to protect the tripartite process for future wage orders.

Ordinary workers in Metro Manila will watch closely as the case unfolds, hoping the courts uphold the RTWPB decision so families can finally see relief in their daily budgets. The fight underscores how every delay affects real lives in communities that depend on steady, modest gains in pay.

Attention now centers on how the OSG's filing to lift the TRO will interact with the labor coalition's intervention motion, with observers noting that swift action by Branch 152 could either restore the wage order quickly or prolong the uncertainty through extended briefing schedules.

Should the suspension hold, labor leaders including Leody de Guzman have indicated readiness for escalated actions that draw in wider community networks, reminding families that minimum wage decisions remain a focal point of economic life because they directly shape household stability amid ongoing price pressures felt in every neighborhood.

This article was produced with AI-assisted research and editorial support. Reporting is based on sources cited in the article.