NCR Minimum Wage Will Reach P780 After Its Biggest Hike Yet
The increase will be rolled out in two phases, starting in July.
Published on Jun 30, 2026
(SPOT.ph) More than 1.1 million minimum wage earners in Metro Manila are set to receive what the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is calling the biggest daily wage increase ever approved in the region.
Under Wage Order No. NCR-27, the increase will be rolled out in two phases: P60 starting July 19, 2026 and another P25 starting January 20, 2027.
Once fully implemented, the minimum wage in Metro Manila will rise to P780 per day or P17,100 per month for workers in the non-agriculture sector. For workers in agriculture, service and retail establishments with 15 workers or fewer, and manufacturing establishments with fewer than 10 workers, the minimum wage will rise to P743 per day or P16,300 per month.
That means the full P85 increase would translate to roughly P1,900 to P2,200 more a month, depending on whether they work five or six days a week. The first phase would add about P1,300 to P1,600 a month starting July, with the remaining P550 to P650 coming in January.
Also read: How Likely Is a P1,200 Minimum Wage in Metro Manila?
Who else would be affected?
Several labor groups, including the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, Partido Manggagawa, and Kapatiran ng mga Unyon at Samahang Manggagawa, had also sought much larger increases, with the petitions ranging from P200 to P842.
So while the approved P85 increase is well below what some labor groups had requested, it's still much larger than last year’s P50 daily increase, which raised the NCR minimum wage to P695 for non-agriculture workers and P658 for agriculture workers in 2025. At the time, DOLE described the P50 raise as the highest ever granted by the NCR wage board.
The effects could also go beyond minimum wage earners. The NWPC said around 1.7 million full-time employees earning above the minimum wage could “indirectly benefit” from salary adjustments at the company level. That's because a higher minimum wage can bring entry-level pay closer to the salaries of workers who were already earning slightly more, prompting some companies to adjust other pay rates as well.
Also read: How to Ask for a Higher Salary at Work
Micah believes that writing is always political. Beyond the byline, you’ll find her bruising herself on a pole or doting on her beagle. Reach her at micah@spot.ph.