The NAGKAISA Labor Coalition on Sunday called on the Labor secretary and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) to file their comment before the Supreme Court without further delay in a case challenging court orders that blocked a Metro Manila wage increase.

"The employers have filed their comment and the workers have submitted their reply," Nagkaisa Chairman Jose Sonny G. Matula, who also serves as counsel for the petitioners, said in a statement.

"We urge the Labor secretary and government lawyers to complete their submission without further delay. This is a public-interest case involving wages needed for food, transportation, rent, utilities, loans and other family necessities," he added.

The Petition and the Blocked Wage Order

The petition was filed on Aug. 11 by Party-list Rep. Elijah R. San Fernando together with labor groups, including the Federation of Free Workers, the National Federation of Labor, and Sentro. It challenges orders issued by two Pasig City trial courts and a Navotas City court involving Wage Order NCR-27.

Issued on June 23, NCR-27 provides for a P60 daily wage increase effective July 25 and an additional P25 on Jan. 20, 2027, for a total increase of P85. Wage orders like NCR-27 are issued under Republic Act No. 6727, the Wage Rationalization Act, which assigns minimum wage-setting to regional tripartite boards rather than the courts — the framework the petition now asks the Supreme Court to test.

Court filings show that a status quo ante order, a temporary restraining order, and a writ of preliminary injunction prevented the wage order from taking effect. These are interim reliefs: a status quo ante order restores conditions as they were before the contested act, while a restraining order and an injunction suspend enforcement while a case is pending. Because they intervened before the July 25 effectivity, none of the P85 in increases under NCR-27 has taken effect. Nagkaisa shared the documents with BusinessWorld over the weekend.

Government Seeks More Time

In a motion dated Sept. 22, the OSG, which represents the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board for the National Capital Region and the National Wages and Productivity Commission, sought an additional 30 days — until Oct. 26 — to file its comment.

The OSG said it needed time "to confer and coordinate" with its clients, citing other cases pending before the trial courts and the Court of Appeals. The comment, once filed, will give the justices the government's position in the case.

Employers Move to Dismiss

In a consolidated comment dated Sept. 29, Readycon Trading and Construction Corp., R-II Builders, Inc., and the Alliance of Philippine Fishing Federations, Inc. asked the Supreme Court to dismiss the petition, arguing that Wage Order NCR-28 had rendered the case moot.

Issued on Sept. 7, NCR-28 grants a single P60 daily wage increase effective Sept. 26. The employers said the order "has delivered the very relief the petition seeks."

They further argued that the petitioners were not parties to the trial court cases, had bypassed the hierarchy of courts, and had failed to show grave abuse of discretion by the lower courts. The hierarchy-of-courts argument rests on the principle that litigants are generally expected to seek relief from lower courts before turning to the Supreme Court. They also contended that Article 126 of the Labor Code bars injunctions against proceedings before wage boards, not the enforcement of an already issued wage order.

Petitioners' Reply and Cost Estimates

In a reply dated Oct. 12, the petitioners argued that NCR-28 did not resolve claims covering the period from July 25 to Sept. 25, or the remaining P25 tranche under NCR-27.

noted that the P60 increase represented about 8.63% of the previous P695 daily minimum wage. Assuming 54 compensable working days, the petitioners estimated a potential wage differential of P3,240 per worker, or P3.564 billion across 1.1 million minimum wage earners — a figure the filing described as an "indicative aggregate, not an adjudicated sum."

The petitioners also estimated a P30-a-day wage distortion adjustment for 1.7 million workers, amounting to P2.754 billion. Wage distortion refers to the compression of pay differences that can follow a minimum wage increase, which is why adjustments of this kind are often sought alongside hikes. Combined, the estimates total P6.318 billion, although they stressed that these are not judicial findings.

"The workers cannot recover yesterday's meals by receiving tomorrow's wages," according to the reply.

Mr. Matula said the estimates "illustrate the potential economic significance of the dispute," adding that any proven entitlement should be resolved promptly.

What Comes Next

Nagkaisa said the petition raises the question of whether trial courts may block wage orders under Republic Act No. 6727, the Wage Rationalization Act. The Supreme Court will decide on both the petitioners' motion for leave to file their reply and the OSG's request for additional time. The Oct. 26 deadline the OSG sought and the court's action on the motion for leave are the near-term markers, and how they are resolved will set the pace for a ruling on the core question of whether the orders halting NCR-27 can stand.

— Erika Mae P. Sinaking, BusinessWorld

Source: Labor coalition presses gov't to file comment in P85 wage lawsuit