Profits of oil companies shoot up as ordinary Filipinos' real wages fall

"The wages of ordinary Filipinos faces steep fall while profits of oil companies shoot up," observed the militant labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU).

Petron Corp. and Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. registered a 76- percent and 102-percent increases in their profits last year. "The gap between profits of big companies and value of real wages of ordinary worker widens. Workers' real wages only amounted to P239.32 in December 2005 vis-a-vis the nominal wage of P325.

"This constant drop in real wages is caused by the decline in the purchasing power of the peso which fell to P0.75 in December last year as resulted by incessant rise of prices of basic commodities, skyrocketing of oil prices and the implementation of the Reformed Value Added Tax Law (RVAT)," said KMU Secretary General Joel Maglunsod.

Research studies show that the two mentioned local refiners posted net profits of P11.8 billion in 2005 which is P5.54 billion higher from the P6.26 billion which they obtained in 2004. Series of oil price hikes characterized the period.

"This only proves our point that these oil companies are exploiting the oil deregulation law. While Malacanang is washing its hand on the unstoppable rises of oil prices, at the same time, it continues to ignore the rightful appeal of the workers for an urgent wage relief," continued Labog.

According to the IBON Foundation, there had been 71 rounds of oil price increases from April 1996 to the present since the oil deregulation law was passed. Meanwhile, the government only approved Emergency Cost of Living Allowances (ECOLAs) and meager regional wage hikes which always fail to meet the ever rising cost of living. The last nationally legislated wage increase was enacted in 1989 while inflation rate has gone up by 45.8% since 1997.