MORE than 3,000 business firms are not paying minimum wage, according to Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone, quoting a report from the Department of Labor and Employment.

Evardone, chairman of the House Public Information Committee, said that of the 19,539 establishments inspected by DOLE, 3,600 were found violating the minimum wage law, a serious offense that should be punished with stiffer  penalties.

This is why, Evardone said, he is pushing for the early approval of House Bill No. 1889 which he filed early this year seeking bigger fines for business owners who refuse to give their workers the minimum wage.

The neophyte congressman explained that his measure, which provides a fine of P100,000 to violators, seeks to amend  Republic Act 6727 or the Wage Rationalization Law that imposes only a P25,000 fine on offenders.

Citing DOLE statistics, the lawmaker said there are more than 800,000 business establishments employing about 6.5 million workers.

Many of those workers, he said, are receiving wages that are not enough to pay for their basic needs like food, clothing, house rent and other items “vital to their daily existence.”

“The minimum wage law could be a great help to the Filipino workers if only business establishments are properly implementing it,” Evardone said.

He expects the measure to be a House priority when Congress resumes sessions in May.   

“We hope that Congress will listen to the appeal of our workers by enacting a law that will truly look at their plight. HB 1889, once enacted into law, will penalize unscrupulous employers with stiffer penalties once they violate the minimum wage law,” he said.

The measure, now pending with the House Committee on Labor, also requires erring firms to pay moral damages of no less than P30,000 for each and every affected worker plus the cost of litigation, including attorney’s fees.