By NITZ ARANCON Correspondent THE Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) are set lead separate street demonstrations in the city today in an effort to pressure the government into putting an end to contractualization, and to increase wages. The demonstrations would be staged in time for the celebration of Labor Day. KMU alone is expecting some 2,500 workers to take part in the demonstrations, according to Wildon Barros, KMU secretary general and concurrent chairman of the Alyasang Makabayan (Bayan) here. Barros said the KMU wants an end to  the contractualization of workers, and a daily wage of P750 for each worker. The ALU-TUCP is also calling for an end to contractualization even as it seeks a P168 increase in the daily wage of workers in northern Mindanao. Nicandro Borja, ALU-TUCP vice president for northern Mindanao, said that based on a study by ALU-TUCP,  a worker needs to earn at least P486 a day to make both ends meet in Region 10. ALU-TUCP has submitted a petition to the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) to increase by P168 the P318 minimum daily wage in northern Mindanao. Meanwhile, Barros said KMU’s demand for a P750 daily wage is only 70 percent of what his group thinks the  minimum national wage should be. He said the minimum national wage should be P1,119 a day because of the government’s failure to prevent prices of basic commodities from shooting up. Barros said that while the government has been setting rules on workers’ wages, it failed on price control. “Dili mabuhi ang trabahante sa   minimum wage nga P318 kada adlaw sa Region 10 tungod sa kanunay nga pagsaka sa  presyo sa mga basic  commodities... Mabuhi ba gud na anang P318 nga suweldo kada adlaw?” asked Barros rhetorically. He said the RTWPB should be abolished, and Congress should have a say on wages. Barros also said the practice of  contractrualization has continued despite the government’s promise to end it. He said the practice has resulted in loss of jobs even as he called it “anti-labor.” Borja’s group would start today’s demonstrations at 6 am. They would assemble at the rotunda in Nazareth and proceed to Divisoria for a rally. The KMU would start its street demonstrations at the Press Freedom Monument at the capitol grounds at 9 am. From there, they would march towards CM Recto Avenue, Osmeña Street towards Cogon area, JR Borja Street, Apolinar Velez  Street, and Divisoria where they would culminate their rally at the  Magsaysay Park near Xavier University in the afternoon. Chief Supt. Agripino Javier, police director for northern Mindanao, said security measures are already in place, and there was no need for a new security plan. “We will be doing what we have always been doing,” Javier said. Police would be keeping an eye on crowded places, the airport in Laguindingan in Misamis Oriental, bus  terminals,  seaports, shopping centers, markets, and plazas, among others. Javier said checkpoint operations would continue, and boundaries and vital installations would be secured. Chief Insp. Mardy Hortillosa said city police director Senior Supt. Robert Roy Bahian ordered all police station commanders in the city to secure areas where demonstrations would be staged. Hortillosa said Bahian instructed the police to exercise “maximum tolerance” in dealing with demonstrators. He said the police would keep their distance from demonstrators “kay katungod man pud na sa mga raliyista nga mag-rally sila basta malinawon lang.” Hortillosa however appealed to organizers of the rallies to police their own ranks.