By Caryl Gonzales

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) will review the call of state employees next year to increase the minimum salary wage to P33,000 to establish a fair adjustment that the Marcos administration can make.

In an interview, DBM Director Gerald Janda said although they recognize the call of workers, they still have the Salary Standardization Law 5.

“Magkakaroon po ulit tayo ng isa pang pag-aaral o ito pong tinatawag nating compensation study by 2023, at ito po ay mahalagang mapag-aralan po natin ang mga kinakailangan nating sweldo sa gobyerno,” Janda said.

[“We will have another study, or this is what we call the compensation study, by 2023, and this is important for us to study our required salaries in the government,”]

The said SSL 5 will provide all civilian government workers an increase in wages for the fourth and final year on January 1, 2023. However, the increase only goes up by 3.86% to P13,000 per month from P12,517.

Janda said employees would also receive a personal economic allowance of P2,000, of which the workers will receive P15,000 monthly.

Meanwhile, the DMB Director reiterated that it is important to consider the wage increase and the reasonable budget level required to complement the law.

“Hindi naman po dapat makakain yung ating budget para lang sa mga pasweldo kasi meron pa rin po tayong pinaglalaanan para sa’ting mga  capital expenditures, as well as yung for operating expenses ng mga iba’t ibang ahensya,” he said.

[“Our budget should not be consumed just for salaries because we still have some allocated for our capital expenditures, as well as for the operating expenses of the various agencies,”]

He added the agency had included P47 million for the National Expenditure Program for the compensation study.

Several groups have called for a base monthly compensation of P33,000 for state employees amid high inflation.

"We call on President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to take urgent steps to address the worsening plight of workers in government," Confederation for Unity, Recognition and Advancement of Government Employees (COURAGE) National President Santiago Dasmarinas said. 

"Rising inflation has severely eroded the purchasing power of our present incomes. We need an immediate salary increase now," he emphasized.