Discussions have begun in earnest on setting the minimum wage for next year.

The Minimum Wage Commission, a tripartite panel composed of nine representatives each from labor, management and the general public, convened its first full session in two weeks on Tuesday to discuss next year’s rate. 

The management delegation stressed the need to take into account the hardship of small businesses which have to pay the wages, saying that some sectors should be able to pay different wages even if the rate is hiked. 

The labor delegation dismissed the calls, saying such a move would defeat the purpose of having a minimum wage and demanded that next year’s rate be raised sharply considering inflation. 

Labor representatives expressed concerns that applying lower minimum wages for certain sectors could weaken the competitiveness of those industries, making their plight worse due to problems such as labor shortages. 

Also at the session, the management delegation dismissed the labor representatives’ demands for there to be a minimum wage for workers in special employment types and platform workers. The management representatives argued that those workers are classified as self-employed under current laws and it should be up to the government and courts to decide whether to make exceptions.