REPUBLIC ACT NO. 6129 - AN ACT
AMENDING FURTHER THE MINIMUM WAGE LAW BY INCREASING THE MINIMUM WAGE,
ESTABLISHING A WAGE COMMISSION AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Section 1.
Section three, paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of Republic Act
Numbered Six hundred two, as amended, is hereby further amended to read
as follows:
"Sec. 3. Minimum Wage. — (a) Every employer shall pay
to each of his employees who is employed by an enterprise other than in
agriculture minimum wages of not less than eight pesos a day: provided,
that is retail or service enterprises that regularly employ not more
than five employees the minimum wage shall not be less that six pesos a
day from the date of approval of this amendatory Act: provided,
further, that the minimum wage rates prescribed in this and the
next succeeding subsection shall be basic, cash wages, without
deducting from the said minimum wages for industrial and agricultural
workers prescribed in this Act, whatever benefits or allowances which
the workers now enjoy aside from their basic pay, subject to the
pertinent provisions of this Act: And, Provided, finally, that nothing
herein shall justify an employer from violating any existing minimum
wage order which grant benefits more liberal than those established
under this Act.
"(b) Every employer who operates a farm enterprise
shall pay to each of his employees, who is engaged in agriculture,
minimum wages of not less than four pesos and seventy-five centavos a
day.
"(c) Effective on the first of July, nineteen hundred
seventy the minimum wage rate of employees in the government service
shall be as follows: for national government and all government-owned
and/or controlled corporations laborers and workers the same rates as
provided in paragraph (a) hereof; and for provinces, municipalities,
and cities the minimum wage shall be fixed by the respective provinces,
municipalities, and cities as their finances may permit, provided the
same shall not be less than five pesos or the minimum wages being paid
at the time of the approval of this amendatory Act, whichever be higher.
"(d) This Act shall not apply to farm tenancy,
household service, and persons working in their respective houses in
needlework or in any cottage industry registered under the provisions
of Republic Act Numbered Three thousand four hundred seventy."
Sec. 2. The provisions of Section s 4, 5, 6, 7 and
8 of Republic Act Numbered Six hundred two are hereby repealed and in
lieu thereof the following sections are hereby respectively
substituted:
"Sec. 4. Wage Studies; Industry Wage Agreements. —
(a) A Wage Commission, hereafter to be known as the commission, in the
Department of Labor is hereby created, which shall conduct a continuing
study of wage rates in the various agricultural and non-agricultural
industries all over the country for the purpose of ascertaining whether
a substantial number or about ten percent of employees in a given
industry are receiving wages which, although complying with the minimum
provided in this Act, are less than sufficient to maintain them in
health, efficiency and general well-being taking into account the
peculiar circumstances of the industry and geographical location, among
others.f, after such study or studies, the commission is of the opinion
that such number of employees are receiving such wages, it shall, upon
notice and hearing, recommend to the industry concerned the fixing of a
minimum wage for such industry through voluntary collective bargaining
between representatives of the employers and the employees within such
industry: provided, however, thatnothing herein shall preclude
the representatives of employers and employees in the industry from
initiating collective bargaining for such purpose even without the
recommendation of the commission.
"(b) In the selection of such representatives and to
facilitate collective bargaining, the mediation and conciliation
services of the Bureau of Labor Relations may be sought and availed of
by the parties directly or through the Commission.
"(c) In case of conflicts as to the number of and as
to who should be the bargaining representatives of the employers or the
employees in an industry, the commission may, upon proper petition
filed by any party to the conflict, and, after due hearing, order the
holding of representation elections among the employers or the
employees of the industry involved, such that the employees and the
employers shall both be adequately represented. The Commission may seek
the assistance of the Bureau of Labor Relations to assure the clean and
orderly conduct of the elections to be held. No employees or employers
of any enterprise belonging to the industry shall be excluded from
participation in such elections. Nothing in this section, however,
shall prevent the parties concerned from utilizing any other voluntary
means of determining who shall act as their representatives in the
industry wage bargaining contemplated in this Act.
"The Commission shall promulgate the necessary rules of procedure that
shall govern the conduct of such representation elections: provided,
that such rules shall be given such publicity by the Commission as to
give notice to the parties, including posting of translations in the
local dialect in conspicuous places in the places of work and business
of those who will vote.
"(d) The representatives of the employees and the
employers so designated for purposes of industry wage bargaining shall
meet and confer expeditiously and in good faith for the purpose of
negotiating an agreement as to the minimum wage rate or rates that
shall apply in the industry and its branches.
"(e) Any wage agreement arrived at as a result of
industry-wide collective bargaining referred to above shall be
submitted to the Commission, which shall issue a wage order
incorporating the industry wage agreement within fifteen days from the
date of submission. A wage order duly issued in accordance with this
Act shall have the force of law.
"(f) In the event representatives of employers and
employees in an industry fail to arrive at or to submit a wage
agreement within forty-five days after the date of recommendation by
the Commission, it shall proceed to exercise its powers under section
five hereof. Upon application of the parties, the commission may,
however, grant an extension of the forty-five-day period if there is a
showing that the parties will likely arrive at an agreement should
bargaining be allowed to continue beyond this period.
"Sec. 5. Wage Fixing By Commission. — (a) If for any
reason an industry wage agreement is not arrived at by the parties
concerned within the period provided in the next preceding section or
because a substantial majority of the parties express their preference
for the Commission to fix the appropriate minimum wages for such
industry, it shall proceed to fix the same after notice and hearing.
"(b) Within sixty days from the date the commission
assumes the exercise of its authority hereunder by notifying the
parties thereof, the Commission shall promulgate a wage order
establishing the minimum wage to be paid by employers in the industry
or for the various branches thereof.
"(c) A minimum wage to be established by the
commission shall be as nearly adequate as is economically feasible to
maintain the minimum standard of living necessary for the health,
efficiency, and general well-being of employees.n the determination of
a minimum wage, the wage commission shall among other relevant factors,
consider the following:
"(1) The cost of living;
"(2) The wages established for work of like or
comparable character by collective agreements or wage orders;
"(3) The wages paid for work of like or comparable
character by employers who voluntarily maintain reasonable standards;
"(4) Fair return of the capital invested; and
"(5) The size, location and fertility of the
agricultural farms.
"(d) The Commission shall not establish for any
agricultural or non-agricultural industry a minimum wage of less than
the prevailing minimum wage obtaining in the industry on the effective
date of this amendatory Act, and in no case less than the minimum wage
rates set in Section three of this Act. These wages may include minimum
wages varying with localities, if in the judgment of the commission
conditions make such local differentiation proper and necessary to
effectuate the purposes of this Act.
"(e) A wage order shall take effect fifteen days
after due notice given of the issuance thereof by publication in two
newspapers of general circulation and by such other means as the
commission deems reasonably calculated to give to interested parties
general notice of such issuance. A certified copy of each of such
orders shall be filed in the Office of the Secretary of Labor.
"(f) No employer shall, after the effective date of a
wage order, pay an employee who is within the scope of the wage order,
employed by him, wages at less than the amount prescribed in such
order.
"(g) The Commission may not, on its own initiative,
disturb the minimum wages already established in an existing wage
order, within two years from the date of its effectivity. Within such
period, however, the Commission may decide to incorporate in a wage
order new wage rates arrived at in a subsequent industry wage agreement
resulting from voluntary negotiations or collective bargaining.
"(h) A minimum rate established by the wage
commission shall in no way prevent individual workers' unions in
particular firms or enterprises in the industry from bargaining for
higher wages with their respective employers."
"Sec. 6. Appeal From Wage Order. — "(a) Any party
aggrieved by a wage order issued under this Act may appeal from such
order to the Court of Appeals within fifteen days after the last
publication of the order in the manner provided in Republic Act
Numbered Fifty-four hundred and thirty-four.f the petitioner or
appellant is an employee, wage earner, farmer, or laborer, he shall be
exempted from filing an appeal bond and docketing fee and he can file
typewritten pleadings in all cases.
"The appeal shall not, unless specifically ordered by the appellate
court, operate as a stay of the order unless the person complaining of
such order shall file in court an undertaking with a surety or sureties
satisfactory to the court for the payment to the employees affected by
the order, in the event such order is affirmed, of the difference
between the amount which such employees are entitled to receive under
the order and the compensation they actually received which such stay
is in effect.
"(b) No injunction may be issued by any court to
restrain any proceeding of or before the wage commission or to render
ineffective a wage order duly promulgated, except in the case provided
in the preceding paragraph."
"Sec. 7. Wage Commission; Composition; Tenure of
Office. — "(a) The wage commission to be established under this Act
shall be composed of five members, three representing the public (one
of whom shall be appointed as Chairman), one representing labor, and
one representing employers: provided, that representatives of the
public shall neither be employees nor employers, nor in any manner be
connected with or have pecuniary interest in any private business or
industrial enterprise, whether individual or corporate, and none of the
members of the Commission may hold any other public office. The
Chairman and members shall have a term of office of six years:
provided, that of the first three members representing the public, the
Chairman shall hold office for six years, and the other two shall be
appointed, one for two years and the other for four years, but at the
expiration of their respective terms, their successors shall be
appointed for a full term of six years reckoned from the date of such
expiration.
"(b) The Chairman and members of the commission shall
be appointed by the President of the Philippines with consent of the
Commission on Appointments: provided, that the first chairman and
members shall be appointed within one month after the approval of this
amendatory Act.
"(c) The Chairman shall have the qualifications of a
Judge of the Court of First Instance, and the other members shall be
members of the bar for at least five years or holders of bachelor's
degree in public or business administration, economics or political
science, who have qualified in any competitive examination required for
first grade civil service eligibility.
"(d) The Chairman shall receive the annual salary of
twenty-three thousand pesos and the members, twenty- two thousand pesos
each.
"(e) Three members of the Commission shall constitute
a quorum and its decision and recommendations shall require the
affirmative vote of not less than three members.
"(f) The Commission shall be assisted by technical
and administrative staff entities under the supervision of its
Chairman. The Chairman shall appoint such personnel as may be necessary
for the efficient operation of the Commission, subject to Civil Service
regulations: provided, that the technical personnel shall not be
subject to the wage and position classification office.
"Sec. 8. Powers and Duties of Commission. — "(a) In
conducting a continuing study of wage rates and other economic
conditions in any industry, the Commission may call upon the assistance
of any national, provincial, or local government agency.t may also
summon witnesses or call upon any person to furnish additional
information to aid it in its deliberations.
"(b) The Commission shall collect and/or compile,
analyze and periodically disseminate information, as a continuing
activity, essential to the effective administration of this Act,
including but not limited to employment, wages, hours, and other
conditions of work by locality, industry and occupation; wage
practices; cost of living; family incomes and expenditures; production
costs; labor productivity; investments and returns; and such other
general economic indicators and non-economic data necessary for the
accomplishment of its functions.
"(c) The hearings of the Commission may be held at
the instance of any party concerned, in the region in which a minimum
wage is to be fixed. They shall be open to the public but may hold
closed-door sessions when receiving evidence that may subject any party
or witness to regulatory or penal sanction. Any member of the
Commission may be authorized to conduct its hearings, receive testimony
or deposition or other evidence or proof regarding any matter of fact,
but his findings and recommendations shall be subject to ratification
of the Commission.
"The Commission, whenever it deems such action appropriate or
necessary, may appoint hearing officers for any region for the purpose
of receiving evidence therein and reporting their findings to the
commission. Such hearing officers shall have the authority and power as
a member of the commission in the conduct of hearings: provided, that
such hearing officer shall be a member of the bar in the government
service.
"(d) The Chairman of the Commission or any member
thereof when duly authorized by the Chairman, shall have the power to
administer oaths, to take or cause to be taken the deposition of
witnesses and to require by subpoena the attendance and testimony of
witnesses and the production of all books, records, and other evidence
relative to any matter under study or investigation.n case of failure
of any person to comply with a subpoena lawfully issued under this
section or on the refusal of any witness to produce evidence or to
testify to any matter regarding which he may be lawfully interrogated,
the commission shall have the power to compel obedience by proceeding
for contempt, as in the case of disobedience of the requirements of a
subpoena issued by any competent court or a refusal to testify therein.
The Commission shall have the power to certify to official Acts.
"(e) No person shall be excused from attending and
testifying or from producing books, papers, correspondence, memoranda,
contracts, agreements or other records and documents before the
commission or in any cause or preceding instituted under this Act, on
the ground that the testimony or evidence, documentary or otherwise,
required of him may tend to incriminate him or subject him to penalty
or forfeiture, but no individual shall be prosecuted or subjected to
any penalty or forfeiture for or on account of any transaction, matter
or thing concerning which he is compelled to testify or produce
evidence, documentary or otherwise, after having claimed his privilege
against self-incrimination, except that such individual so testifying
shall not be exempt from prosecution and punishment for perjury
committed in so testifying."
"(f) The Commission shall promulgate the necessary
rules and regulations to implement this Act.t may, however, adopt its
own internal rules of procedures consonant with the requirements of due
process; but the rules of evidence applied by courts in proceedings at
law shall not apply strictly in any proceeding conducted by or before
the Commission.
"The rules promulgated by the Commission under this Act shall take
effect ten days after publication in two newspapers of general national
circulation.
"(g) The Commission, within fifteen days after the
opening of each regular session of the Congress of the Philippines
shall submit to the Senate and the House of Representatives, through
the President of the Senate and the Speaker, respectively, an annual
report, which shall include, among others, the results of the wage
studies and the wage orders it has issued."
Sec. 3. Section 15 (a) and 16 (b) of the Minimum
Wage Law hereby amended to read as follows:
"Sec. 15. Penalties and Recovery of Wage Due Under
This Act. — "(a) Any person who violates any of the provisions of this
Act or of the rules and regulations issued thereunder shall upon
conviction thereof be subject to a fine of not less than upon five
hundred pesos nor more than two thousand pesos, or upon second
conviction, to imprisonment of not less that six months nor more than
one year, or to both fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the
court.f any alien is convicted of violating this Act or the rules and
regulations issued thereunder he shall be deported without further
proceedings after service of his sentence."
"Sec. 16. (b) The Court of Industrial Relations shall
have jurisdiction over claims for payment of minimum wages where there
still exist between the parties an employer-employee relationship, or
where the claimant seek reinstatement.n the absence of any of these
circumstances, such claim shall come under the jurisdiction of the
regular courts.
"Any provision of law or rules of court to the contrary
notwithstanding, oral evidence shall be admissible to rebut, impugn, or
otherwise modify the contents of payrolls, vouchers, pay slips, time
records, and other documents containing the signature of an employee or
laborer in such cases, the payrolls, vouchers, pay slips, time records,
and other similar documents being merely prima facie evidence of their
contents.
"The fixing of minimum wages on an industry-wide basis above those
fixed by this Act shall be within the jurisdiction of the wage
commission, by that in particular firms or enterprises shall be within
the jurisdiction of the Court of Industrial Relations."
Sec. 4. If any part or provision of this Act
should be declared unconstitutional and invalid, the validity of the
other parts or provisions hereof shall not be affected thereby.
Sec. 5. All Acts or parts of Acts inconsistent
with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed.
Sec. 6. The sum of Five hundred thousand pesos or
so much thereof as may be necessary is hereby appropriated out of any
funds in the National Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the
initial operating expenses of the Wage Commission, which shall include
expenses for salaries, per diems, travelling expenses, purchase of
materials and equipment and other necessary sundry expenses that may be
incurred in carrying out the provisions of this Act. The expenses for
succeeding fiscal years shall be included in the Annual Appropriations
Act.
Sec. 7. This Act shall take effect upon its
approval.
Approved: June 17, 1970
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