[OPINION] Companies and Government should take the Lead in Climate Emergency Actions

By Ina Alleco R. Silverio  -  

Cut power costs, bring down carbon emissions, raise wages and salaries

Every year, labor unions and associations of government employees (such as public-school teachers, health and medical staff, national agency employees) renew their call for substantial wage and salary hikes. They justify their demands by citing increasing costs of living which can be seen in the regularly increasing prices of basic commodities and goods, as well as higher water and electricity rates spurred by still increasing gasoline prices.

In the same way that workers campaign actively for a wage hike, employer and business groups also consistently oppose it.

Setting aside the social justice arguments and the Marxist argument about surplus value, the reasoning of both sides is predictable and expected: workers say they need a wage hike because the wages they receive are far from being enough to cover other urgent needs of their families beyond food and shelter. For instance, the slightest health emergency is enough to wipe out savings if there were any, to begin with. Most Filipino families do not have health insurance, and recreation and amusement most often just takes the form of window-shopping trips to the nearest mall and eating at a fast-food outlet because their budgets are enough for just those activities.  

As for companies, their strongest argument against a wage increase is they have no funds to cover it. And why is this so? Despite the massive profits many companies still generate annually, their profit margins decrease because of operational costs, specifically because of their gargantuan electricity bills.

Lower electricity costs, carbon emissions

In the whole Asian region, electricity rates in the Philippines are among the highest. Consumer organizations including community-based women’s groups often hold picket actions and launch social media campaigns to denounce what they term as the “robbery” of energy distribution companies and the “betrayal” of the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). These agencies are accused of “colluding” with each other given their wont to suddenly increase electricity rates with the barest warning.

There is already a solution that companies should explore so they can cut their electricity bills and grant the wage hike demand of their workers. It’s also a solution that’s good for the planet. Companies should install solar PV systems on the rooftops of their warehouses, their offices, and even their manufacturing and assembly plants because these will bring down their electricity bills. Installing a solar PV system is akin to paying in advance for at least 25 years of electricity, but at a reduced rate compared to the current electricity rates. These savings can have a tremendous impact on their business in many ways, and they can use the money they save to provide wage hikes and added benefits for their workers, or at the least improve occupational health and safety conditions in the workplace.

When companies use electricity from solar power, they reduce their consumption of fuels and in the process also reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and pollution. By using solar power, any business or company participates in the fight against global warming and bring down the Philippines’ dependence on foreign sources.

Also, going green will not only reduce companies’ operational expenses but also gain an effective PR and marketing tool. It’s a fact that companies with an environmentally responsible image generate positive responses from consumers. People prefer to patronize the products and services of companies that contribute to the social good.

All this, coupled with the falling prices of solar PV components and systems, make installing solar on rooftops a good investment. In a nutshell, investing in solar power generates both long-term savings and quick payback for the environment.

These same arguments can also apply for government and government-owned and controlled corporations.

First responders in the Climate Emergency

In the wake of Greta Thunberg and the international youth movement’s call that all human beings and institutions take action against the worsening climate emergency, companies and government agencies should be among the first responders given that they have the most means to make the transition to green processes and operations. Manufacturing and industrial companies and their production and supply chain and logistics operations are among the biggest producers of greenhouse gases. As for government agencies, they should implement the very laws they pass, practice the values they preach.

Finally, cutting fossil fuel consumption and promoting the development and utilization of renewable energy continue to be serious challenges that the Philippines has yet to decisively address. 

Republic Act 9513 or the Renewable Energy Act of 2008 is meant to encourage and promote the widespread use, development, and commercialization of the country's various renewable energy resources. The law establishes the framework for the energy sector’s transition to a sustainable system wherein renewable energy is the prominent, viable, and competitive fuel option. It has to be understood, however, that the shift from fossil fuel sources to renewable forms of energy is the key strategy to ensure the success of the transition. All actions and reforms when it comes to energy industry development should make this a key consideration.

To pursue this policy, current initiatives should be directed towards creating a market-based environment that is supportive and conducive to private sector investment and participation. Given this, national government agencies should also install solar PV systems on the rooftops of all their buildings and prove government sincerity in its response to climate change. All government-run institutions should be shining proofs of concepts proving the effectiveness of RE and solar energy. Not only will the government be proving its sincerity in caring for the environment and acting against climate change, but it will also be saving potentially billions on electricity bills.

As for the savings that will be generated, the government can use them to increase the salaries and benefits of its employees. It can also use the funds to regularize all its contractual employees, many of whom work in the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Department of Health (DOH), and the finance agencies. 

Savings can also be used to improve the country’s disaster preparation, response, and mitigation programs. It has already been established that the best preparation against disasters is to ensure the renewal of the environment: one way to revive it is to lessen if not eradicate the mining and use of fossil fuels. 

There is no time to lose when taking action against climate change. The private sector and the government should take the lead and make all their rooftops shine with solar PV panels that will generate clean, safe, and renewable energy.

Ina Alleco R. Silverio is a manager of the Social Transformation Unit of a solar energy company that also actively advocates Pope Francis' call for ecological conversion in his encyclical Laudato Si': On Care for Our Common Home, as well as the United Nation's SDGs.