THE Kampihan ng Maralita at Manggagawa (Kamanggagawa) Party-list group and several other labor groups on Wednesday filed a petition before the Supreme Court seeking to nullify the orders issued by the Regional Trial Court in Pasig City enjoining the implementation of the P85 minimum wage increase in Metro Manila.
The petition, likewise, sought to stop the RTC in Navotas City from hearing another application for issuance of a status quo ante order filed by the Alliance of Philippine Fishing Federations Inc. (APFF)
Likewise, the petitioners asked the SC to issue an order guiding the lower courts to outrightly reject and dismiss petitions against wage orders to prevent the proliferation of similar cases.
The petition stemmed from the status quo ante order issued by the Executive Judge of the RTC in Pasig dated July 23, 2026 and the temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by Pasig RTC Branch 152 dated July 30, 2026 stopping the implementation of the P85 minimum wage hike approved by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board in Metro Manila in two tranches.
The first amounting to P60 took effect on July 25 and the remaining P25 will take effect on January 20, 2027.
The SQAO and TRO were issued in response to a petition filed by construction companies Readycon Trading and Construction Corp. and R-II Builders Inc.
Also assailed in the petition is the order issued by the Navotas RTC on August 3, 2026 setting APFF’s application for SQAO for clarificatory hearing.
The petitioners argued that any order from the lower court enjoining a wage order is prohibited under Article 123 of the Labor Code.
The said provision mandates that any party aggrieved by the wage order by the regional board may file an appeal before the commission within 10 days which will be decided within 60 days
Furthermore, the petitioners said the trial courts are prohibited from issuing TROs or any injunctive relief against wage order under Article 126 of the Labor Code which states: ‘No preliminary or permanent injunction or temporary restraining order may be issued by any court, tribunal or other entity against any proceedings before the Commission or the Regional Boards.’
‘The issue of the propriety of the determination of minimum wage is likewise akin to a political question. The lower courts do not have the power to settle questions regarding the ratio and wisdom behind a Wage Order,’ the petitioners said.
‘The respondent lower courts and judges have arrogated upon themselves the settlement of an issue beyond their mandates. They neither have the authority nor the necessary knowledge, expertise and experience to ascertain the propriety and wisdom of Wage Orders,’ they added.
The petitioners added that wage orders are social protection measures mandated by the Constitution.
‘Courts must exercise extreme caution and yield to social justice mandates rather than issuing ex-parte or interlocutory stays against wage increases,’ the petition stated.
The petitioners also pleaded to the SC to decide on the merits of the petition even if the issues they raise become moot and academic.
Joining Kamanggagawa Party-List group as petitioners are the Workers and Peasants Party of the Philippines (WPP), Uni Global Union – Philippine Liaison Council (Uni-PLC), Federation of Free Workers (FFW), National Federation of Labor (NFL), Sentro ng Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (Sentro), Unified Filipino Service Workers (UFSW), Partido Manggagawa (PM), and the Council of Teachers and Employees in Schools, Colleges and Universities in the Philippines (Coescup).