ABOUT 200 Negrense workers trooped to Department of Labor and Employment (Dole)-Negros Occidental office in Bacolod City Friday morning to ask President Rodrigo Duterte to fulfill his campaign promise to end contractualization.
Noli Rosales, spokesperson of Kilusang Mayo Uno-Negros Occidental, said they joined the nationwide protest against the new order signed by Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello on December 28, which does not address the abuses on workers.
Under Department Order 168, termination of the worker’s employment after the expiration of his contract with his employer is no longer allowed.
However, the group said they are not convinced that it would end contractualization.
Rosales said they are asking Duterte not to implement the new order, adding that the president should fulfill his campaign promise to end abuses among workers.
He said that Bello is “inutile” because the new order only worsened the situation of the laborers.
Moreover, he said they are also calling for the approval of the proposed P125 across-the-board salary increase for all the workers in the country.
Meanwhile, the P15 to P25 daily minimum wage increase for workers in Western Visayas, including Negros Occidental, is expected to take effect this month.
Under Wage Order 23, workers in the commercial and industrial sectors will get additional P25 daily minimum wage increase while the agricultural workers will receive P15.