EMPLOYMENT SITUATION

 

   Two industrial companies have retrenched workers due to the global financial crisis, namely, the Pacific cordage in Albay with 166 and Yinlu Bicol Mining corporation in Paracale, Camarines Norte with 40 workers.  Another one, a marine products factory (Sanbar) closed its shop in Naga City while maintaining only its branch in Tabaco City due to low demand abroad.

                                

   To help displaced overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), Department of Labor and Employment in Bicol and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) launched the DOLE Help Desk. Samuel Madrid, OWWA Bicol Director, said that some government agencies  tied up with them to help displaced Bicolanos, Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) said it will also help those displaced OFWs who want to work abroad while DOLE Bicol will help OFWs find local employment.

 

   The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) office in Bicol is also set to provide trainings for those who are planning to put up their own business while OWWA Bicol will facilitate loan packages for displaced OFWs. P50,000 up to P500,000 loans which are payable in two years are being offered by OWWA . For Bicol P20 million worth of loans was allocated. 

 

   As of March, 360 were hired from 742 applicants at the jobs fair program of the DPWH Bicol held in coordination with the DOLE, the National Constructors Association of the Philippines (NACAP), and the Philippine Contractors Association, Inc. (PCA). DPWH served as the matching conduit for employment of prospective workers whose capabilities will match with available infrastructure projects. 

 

   The city government of Tabaco received a P300,000 grant from the DOLE Bicol for the implementation of the government's emergency employment under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay Para Sa Ating Disadvantage Workers (TUPAD) program. The grant will be utilized to pay the wages of some 51 workers from the informal sector affected by the global financial crisis. Workers who will qualify will earn a minimum wage of P260.00 per day for a one (1) month work schedule.

 

   Over 500 registered nurses in the Bicol region were hired for a government program due to start on April 1, an official of the Department of Labor and Employment said.  Nurses who were unemployed for several years and whose family-members were displaced by the global economic crisis were given priority under the program, dubbed "Nurses Assigned to Rural Service" (NARS). Some P5.3 million was allocated for the Bicol region to cover the salaries of the nurses. The hired nurses will serve for 6 months and will be paid a monthly salary of P8,000.

 

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