Senate employees argue that an increase in inflationary aid is just and necessary for all workers.

According to their union, the increase in inflation assistance for Senate employees is the result of decades of advocacy on the part of the group, which also called for higher benefits and assistance for all workers nationwide in the face of rapidly rising living costs.

The SENADO Sandigan ng mga Empleyadong Nagkakaisa sa Adhikain ng Demokratikong Organisasyon (Sandigan ng mga Empleyadong Nagkakaisa sa Adhikain ng Demokratikong Organization) explained on Tuesday that the increase in inflation assistance from P12,000 to P50,000 was due to their demand for higher benefits because their wages hardly support a living.

They drew attention to the stark disparity between the minimum wage earned by workers, including rank-and-file government employees, and the daily wage set aside for a family of four to survive, which is P1,161.

“Even if the last tranche of the Salary Standardization Law has been implemented for government staff, the true worth of our salary is not enough for a family of five to six to subsist daily,” SENADO said  in Filipino.

At their flag-raising ceremony on Monday, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri announced that they would increase the upper chamber's one-time inflation assistance to P50,000 from P12,000 in order to assist employees as the cost of goods and living continues to rise.

Zubiri stated that this covers all 3,000 Senate employees and that it was funded by savings made by the Senate.

“Giving additional benefits to complement salaries that have been left behind is right and just. In the context of a salary that can sustain a living and decent living, the current wage is very far from allowing workers to live decently,” they added.
“The resolution and any proposed law before the Senate and the Congress to raise the salary of workers and staff are right and just especially at this time,” they continued.