Cebu BPO workers’ group BIEN-Cebu has criticized President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s proposed tax reform measures, saying the planned increase in income tax exemptions could be offset by higher taxes on consumer goods.
The group issued the statement after lawmakers moved to consider raising the income tax exemption ceiling to P350,000 while proposing higher taxes on products such as sweetened beverages and vape products.
BIEN-Cebu described the proposal as a burden shift rather than genuine tax reform, arguing that increased consumption taxes could eventually affect workers through higher prices of everyday goods.
“For workers, this is a step forward and two full steps back,” BIEN-Cebu President Kyle Enero said.
“The administration presents the proposal as tax relief, but workers eventually pay for it through higher prices on everyday goods. This is not genuine tax reform—it is merely shifting the burden from one pocket to another,” he added.
The group said raising the income tax exemption threshold would provide relief to workers but should not be paired with measures that increase taxes on consumption, which it said disproportionately affect ordinary consumers.
BIEN-Cebu also criticized what it described as a reliance on consumption-based taxation instead of strengthening revenue sources from wealthier individuals and corporations.
The group urged the government to improve tax collection, address tax evasion, review government spending, and reassess debt payments to create more funds for social services and workers’ welfare.
Enero also cited the unresolved estate tax liability linked to the Marcos family, which the group said amounts to around P203 billion with penalties, as an example of what it called unequal tax enforcement.
“It is unjust to ask workers to shoulder additional taxes while long-standing tax obligations involving the country’s most powerful families remain unresolved,” Enero said.
BIEN-Cebu also called for a higher income tax exemption ceiling that would include workers’ benefits and incentives, noting that many employees in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector rely on allowances to supplement their basic salaries.
The group further renewed its call for the implementation of a wealth tax, arguing that individuals with greater financial capacity should contribute more toward government revenues.
“A genuinely pro-worker tax system does not rely on taxing consumption. It taxes wealth more fairly, closes avenues for tax avoidance and evasion, and ensures that even the most powerful are held to the same standards as ordinary Filipinos,” Enero said.
The group’s statement comes as Congress continues discussions on possible changes to the country’s tax structure under the Marcos administration’s fiscal reform agenda.
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