CAGAYAN de Oro City - Labor groups are asking the Pasig Regional Trial Court Branch 152 to lift a preliminary injunction that has stopped the implementation of NCR Wage Order No. 27, saying the delay is already affecting workers who were supposed to receive an additional ₱60 daily wage.

In a press statement issued Aug. 23, the Federation of Free Workers (FFW) and affiliates of the NAGKAISA! Labor Coalition said they are preparing a counter-manifestation and motion to dissolve the injunction, subject to the court granting their pending motion for leave to intervene.

FFW President and NAGKAISA! Chairperson Atty. Sonny Matula said the labor groups want the court to determine whether the bond required for the injunction has been properly posted and approved.

“We are not asking the court to disregard due process,” Matula said. 

“But while our intervention is pending, the wage increase for many workers is also being held back,” he added.

The coalition cited Rule 58, Section 4(b) of the Rules of Court, arguing that a preliminary injunction may be issued only upon approval of the required bond. 

It said the employer-petitioners have yet to post the ₱10-billion injunction bond, based on its reading of a recent court filing.

The labor groups are asking the court to dissolve, recall or declare the injunction ineffective if the required bond has not been posted and approved.

NAGKAISA! Convenor and SENTRO Deputy Secretary General Nice Coronacion said the wage issue has a broad public-interest impact, as workers continue to wait for the implementation of the wage order.

The coalition estimated that workers have already lost about ₱1.32 billion in wages, based on ₱60 per day for 20 days for 1.1 million workers.

However, the figures and legal arguments are claims of the labor coalition, and the court has yet to rule on their request. 

The jurisdictional issue involving the wage order is also being raised before the Supreme Court, according to the group.

Partido Manggagawa Chairperson Rene Magtubo argued that the injunction bond, even if posted, should not determine the court’s jurisdiction over the wage order.

The dispute centers on NCR Wage Order No. 27, which grants a ₱60 daily wage increase to covered workers in the National Capital Region. 

Its implementation remains subject to the ongoing legal proceedings.

For NAGKAISA!, the immediate issue is whether the injunction should remain in effect while the legal challenges continue.

“No bond, no writ. Dissolve the injunction. Let Wage Order No. 27 work for the workers,” the coalition said.