Wage hike for domestic workers eyed

Philippine wage regulators opened talks on a possible increase in the minimum pay for domestic workers in Metro Manila, a move that could raise household costs for millions of families even as authorities grapple with weak compliance and uneven ability to pay.

The Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board-National Capital Region on Monday held a public hearing on adjusting the minimum wage for a kasambahay (domestic worker), marking the start of deliberations that could result in a decision after Jan. 15, according to the board chairperson Sarah Buena S. Mirasol.

“We are hopeful that there will also be an increase for domestic workers, following last year’s adjustment for formal sector workers,” she told BusinessWorld.

Ms. Mirasol said the hearing in Pasay City gathered views from local governments, labor groups, employer representatives, and domestic workers themselves.

Ms. Mirasol said the board is weighing several factors, including cost of living, inflation, prevailing wages, and employers’ capacity to pay. Unlike the formal sector, household employers are largely workers themselves rather than businesses, she added.

Data presented during the hearing indicated that the average wage of domestic workers in Metro Manila is around PHP 9,000 a month, above the current minimum of PHP 7,000. This was set by the last minimum wage order effective Jan. 4, 2025.

“That already reflects the prevailing wage in NCR,” she said.

The board is also seeing a shift toward part-time and live-out arrangements for domestic workers, Ms. Mirasol added.

The board is currently relying on the Philippine Statistics Authority’s Labor Force Survey, while awaiting the release of a more detailed results from the rider questions on kasambahays. The results are expected later this year.

Employer representative Federico R. Marquez, Jr. said any wage hike for domestic helpers would be felt most by middle- and low-income households.

“Those earning below P50,000 a month are the ones who will really feel the increase,” he said, noting that “elite-income” households already pay above the minimum.

“For those in the top group, such as families living in gated subdivisions, the increases are negligible. In fact, the current PHP 7,000 minimum wage is almost nothing for them. Most already pay PHP 10,000 to PHP 11,000 for their kasambahays. They can easily afford this,” Mr. Marquez said.

“But for employees… earning less than PHP 50,000 — the increase is substantial. These are the households that will truly feel the impact of a wage hike for a kasambahay,” he added.

Mr. Marquez stressed the need to balance affordability with worker welfare, warning that steep increases could lead some households to forgo hiring domestic help or to circumvent the law.

He also expressed concern about weak compliance, particularly the lack of written employment contracts, which are mandatory under the Kasambahay Law (Republic Act No. 10361), also known as the Domestic Workers Act.

The law establishes comprehensive labor rights and protections for domestic workers, including a written contract, minimum wage, humane working conditions, and social security benefits.

Labor groups, meanwhile, pushed for a meaningful adjustment and stronger enforcement.

Helena Simplina, project officer of the Federation of Free Workers, said the hearing highlighted persistent noncompliance, citing cases of domestic workers earning as low as PHP 2,000 a month.

“There are still employers who do not comply with the minimum wage and registration requirements,” she said, adding that many households remain unregistered with barangays, contributing to data gaps.

Labor sector representative Angelita D. Señorin said workers are expecting a “good increase,” noting that most domestic workers in Metro Manila already refuse jobs paying only the minimum wage.

“No one is really accepting PHP 7,000 anymore,” she said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chief Economist Michael L. Ricafort told BusinessWorld that cost of living and inflation, which vary by region, “are key inputs in wage decisions.”

According to the PSA, full-year NCR inflation averaged 2.4% in 2025, down from 2.6% in 2024, driven by slower food price growth, though higher housing and utility costs exerted upward pressure.

“(The wage) may look low but many of them are stay in. Free or subsidized rent, food, utilities, among others, but mostly free,” Mr. Ricafort added.

Benjamin B. Velasco, an assistant professor at the University of the Philippines Diliman School of Labor and Industrial Relations, said domestic workers deserve higher wages.

“Definitely kasambahays deserve a raise. It’s been a year since they had a wage hike,” he told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat.

While the law mandates 10-point criteria for wage adjustments, in practice it boils down to the cost of living and the capacity of employers to pay, Mr. Velasco said.

“In the case of kasambahays, their employers are the rich, the middle class and the small number of higher paid workers in which both parents are most probably working so they need a househelp for domestic and care work,” Mr. Velasco said. “Given the sustained economic growth, I believe they have the capacity to pay kasambahays a higher salary.”

Mr. Velasco said given the option to work abroad and the high cost of living, the reservation wage — the rate at which a kasambahays is willing to work — has gone up. — Erika Mae P. Sinaking