Partido Manggagawa: Pasig RTC TRO on ₱85 Wage Hike Suffers from Two Fundamental Legal Defects

 

Partido Manggagawa (PM) strongly opposes the Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) issued by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Pasig City, Branch 152, which halted the implementation of Wage Order No. NCR-27 granting an ₱85 minimum wage increase to workers in Metro Manila.

 

Based on our legal analysis, this TRO suffers from two clear legal defects.

 

First, it violates Article 126 of the Labor Code. The law explicitly provides that no preliminary injunction, permanent injunction, or TRO may be issued by any court, tribunal, or other entity against proceedings before the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC) or the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs). Despite this prohibition, the Pasig RTC issued a TRO directly restraining the RTWPB-NCR and the NWPC from implementing the wage order—the very act that the law expressly forbids.

 

Second, and more importantly, the petitioners filed their case in the wrong venue. Under Article 123 of the Labor Code, the exclusive remedy available to any aggrieved party questioning a wage order is to appeal to the NWPC within ten (10) days from the publication of the wage order. If dissatisfied with the NWPC’s decision, the proper recourse is to file a petition with the Court of Appeals—not with a Regional Trial Court. This procedure has been the governing rule since the enactment of Republic Act No. 6727, and the Supreme Court has consistently held that the primary jurisdiction of the NWPC must first be exhausted before the regular courts may intervene.

 

Instead of following this statutory process, Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-II Builders Inc. went directly to the Pasig RTC through a petition for declaratory relief—effectively engaging in forum shopping to circumvent the tripartite dispute resolution mechanism specifically established by law for wage order controversies.

 

This reveals the real strategy behind the TRO. The employers did not challenge the wage order through the legally prescribed process before the RTWPB and the NWPC. Instead, they shifted to a petition for declaratory relief to gain access to a regular court and obtain a TRO. The real issue is not the ₱85 wage increase, but the deliberate sidestepping of the proper remedy in favor of an improper venue.

 

Partido Manggagawa calls on the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) to vigorously assert these two legal arguments during the August 3 hearing: the violation of Article 126 and the failure to follow the exclusive remedy provided under Article 123. The courts must not be allowed to become instruments for delaying a workers’ benefit that has already gone through the full deliberative process of the Regional Wage Board—a process in which these same employers themselves participated as stakeholders.

 

The ₱85 wage increase is not a gift. It is a right earned by workers, supported by evidence, grounded in due process, and guaranteed by law. It must not be held hostage by a TRO that itself runs contrary to the very law it is supposed to uphold.

 

PRESS STATEMENT

August 1, 2026

 

Tungkol sa TRO sa P85 Wage Hike na inilabas ng Pasig RTC

Mali ang Pasig RTC sa paglalabas ng TRO laban sa implementasyon ng P85 wage hike dito sa NCR. Bukod sa labag ito sa Labor Code, wala rin itong katwiran. 

 

Magkakaroon lamang ng katwiran ang TRO ni Judge Manongsong kung  naka TRO din ang presyo ng mga bilihin. 

 

May system loss na nga sa kuryente, pati sweldo ay gusto pa yatang ipa- system loss ni Judge. 

 

Isusubo na lang nawala pa. Wages delayed are wages denied.

 

Ang alam lang yata ni Judge ay ang karapatan ng lahat, kabilang ang employer na tumakbo sa korte anumang oras. Ang hindi niya kabisado ay hindi pwedeng takbuhan ng employer ang pananagutan sa sahod ng mga manggagawa.

 

PRESS STATEMENT

Partido Manggagawa

30 July 2026

PM REACTION TO PBBM’s SONA

The President’s address contained many technical reports, but it failed to meaningfully address the pressing concerns of workers, such as wages, wage reform, jobs, and other labor issues—even as President Marcos acknowledged that workers and the middle class should not be forgotten.

 

The proposed expansion of tax exemptions may benefit above-minimum wage earners, but it provides no relief to minimum wage workers and those earning even less, who have long been exempt from income tax. 

 

There was also no mention of the proposed P200 legislated wage hike and the abolition of provincial rate through the enactment of the proposed National Minimum Wage Law.

 

On the issue of corruption, the President reduced it to his personal grievance and the sacrifice involved in pursuing charges against Martin Romualdez. However, his speech fell short of proposing systemic reforms such as an anti-political dynasty law and electoral reforms.

 

On lowering electricity prices, removing the systems loss charge and the VAT on it will have only a minimal impact on consumers’ bills because these account for only a small portion of total electricity costs. The 12% VAT on generation, transmission, and distribution charges remains in place. Likewise, the persistence of monopolies in the power sector and the country’s continued dependence on imported fossil fuels for energy security remain the fundamental drivers of high electricity prices.

 

While the government’s endorsement of the US-led Pax Silica initiative is expected to generate high-quality jobs, the President made no mention of its potential implications for the country’s electricity and water security, nor of the risks it poses to the existing jobs of Filipino workers in the platform economy.

PRESS STATEMENT

Partido Manggagawa

07.28.2026

Workers' reaction to SONA 2026

 

The President’s address contained many technical reports, but it failed to meaningfully address the pressing concerns of workers, such as wages, wage reform, jobs, and other labor issues—even as President Marcos acknowledged that workers and the middle class should not be forgotten.

 

The proposed expansion of tax exemptions may benefit above-minimum wage earners, but it provides no relief to minimum wage workers and those earning even less, who have long been exempt from income tax.

 

On the issue of corruption, the President reduced it to his personal grievance and the sacrifice involved in pursuing charges against Martin Romualdez. However, his speech fell short of proposing systemic reforms such as an anti-political dynasty law and electoral reforms.

 

On lowering electricity prices, removing the systems loss charge and the VAT on it will have only a minimal impact on consumers’ bills because these account for only a small portion of total electricity costs. The 12% VAT on generation, transmission, and distribution charges remains in place. Likewise, the persistence of monopolies in the power sector and the country’s continued dependence on imported fossil fuels for energy security remain the fundamental drivers of high electricity prices.

 

While the government’s endorsement of the US-led Pax Silica initiative is expected to generate high-quality jobs, the President made no mention of its potential implications for the country’s electricity and water security, nor of the risks it poses to the existing jobs of Filipino workers in the platform economy.

 

Press Statement

Partido Manggagawa

27 July 2026

Nakakahiya kung P2,000 ayuda at 2 preso lang ang maging highlight ng SONA 2026

Nakakahiya ang ikalimang SONA ni Pangulong Bongbong Marcos Jr. kung ang magiging laman lamang nito ay ang P2,000 ayuda sa ilalim ng Unified Package for Livelihood, Industry, Food and Transport (UPLIFT) program para labanan ang nararansang krisis sa ekonomiya, at 2 presong nakakulong dahil sa pagkakasangkot sa flood control scam.

 

Ayon ito sa Partido Manggagawa (PM) na kabilang sa mga grupo ng manggagawa na magsasagawa ng kilos-protesta ngayon araw ng SONA.

 

Matatandaang bago ang kanyang SONA ay nag-anunsyo ang Pangulo ng panibagong financial assistance na nagkakahalaga ng P2,000 mula July hanggang December para sa mahihirap at sa tinawag niyang “malapit nang maging mahirap”, terminong naging mainit na usap-usapan sa social media. 

 

Isang taon naman matapos ang kanyang “mahiya naman kayo” na mensahe kaugnay ng korapsyon sa flood control sa nakaraang SONA ay dalawa pa lamang ang nasa kulungan – sina Senador Ramon Bong Revilla, Jr. at Jinggoy Estrada. Samantalang ang dalawa pang nakakulong na sina Senador Rodante Marcoleta at dating Kongresman Mike Defensor ay nahaharap naman sa ibang kaso ng plunder na may kinalaman sa hindi idineklarang kontribusyon noong nakaraang eleksyon.

 

Una nito ay nanawagan ang PM na upang hindi maging SONAkakahiya ang ikalimang SONA ni PBBM ay agaran at pangmatagalang solusyon laban sa lumalalang cost-of-living crisis ang dapat ilatag at aksyunan.

 

Ayon kay Renato Magtubo, Pangulo ng PM, una dito ang sertipikasyon ng P200 na legislated wage hike at pagsasabatas ng National Minimum Wage na parehong nakabinbin sa ngayon Kongreso; pagrepaso sa Oil Deregulation Law, Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) at Value Added Tax (VAT); public employment program at iba pang reporma na makapagpapagaan sa buhay ng mga Pilipino. 

 

Malinaw aniya sa resulta ng dalawang magkahiwalay na survey ng Pulse Asia at EON-Tangere bago ang SONA na ang mas marami sa listahan ng gustong marinig ng mga Pinoy sa SONA ni BBM ay ang tungkol sa presyo, sweldo, trabaho, kahirapan, at iba pang economic concerns.

PRESS RELEASE

Partido Manggagawa 

27 July 2026