Labor programs help workers cope with global meltdown - DOLE

MANILA, Philippines - Employment facilitation and other well-placed programs are helping Filipino workers weather the effects of the global economic crisis in 2009, the labor department said. In its yearend report, the DOLE admitted 2008 was a "turbulent and challenging" year also due to rising food and fuel prices and weakening of the US dollar. "In the midst of difficulties, the DOLE, nevertheless, remained steadfast in the pursuit of its objective to promote the employment and welfare of every worker. The year, thus, saw the DOLE's vigilance and prompt responses it undertook in order to mitigate the impact of the disastrous external environment on the workers. It introduced new measures while strengthening existing programs to improve its delivery of services to the workers in line with its five major strategies, namely, support for employment generation, employment facilitation, employment preservation, and employment enhancement," the DOLE said in its yearend report posted on its website. Labor secretary Marianito Roque added employment facilitation also continues in response to the global crisis. He cited figures from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) reported that of some 439 displaced OFWs assisted so far, 312 had been given referrals to other recruitment agencies for possible placement overseas. "With some 1.221 million OFWs deployed worldwide from January to November this year, there have been no appalling effects observed from the global financial crisis on OFW deployment -- notwithstanding the displacement of a limited number of workers due to bankruptcy, retrenchment, redundancy, restructuring and reduction in workload - being offset as the global economy's efforts to turn the situation favorably around would continue to require skilled OFWs," he said. At home, DOLE said it provided livelihood assistance to 85,810 marginalized workers including the self-employed and unpaid family workers. It said it tried to help make their existing livelihood undertakings grow into viable and sustainable businesses. "Early this year, livelihood programs were rationalized and reformulated to optimize program benefits and suit the needs of target clients, specifically informal sector (IS) workers including the differently-abled persons, indigenous peoples, parents of child laborers, disadvantaged women and youth, urban poor, and landless farmers and fisher folks and returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). Consequently, a total of 85,810 marginalized and vulnerable groups of workers were assisted in livelihood formation, enhancement, and restoration," it said. Responding to increases in prices of food and oil at the onset of 2008, DOLE launched the Dagdag Kabuhayan Para sa mga Manggagawa or the workers' income augmentation program (WINAP). The program benefited some 43,666 low-income workers from 131 unions who were assisted in obtaining additional income sources to enable them provide adequately for their families. Also, DOLE implemented the Adjustment Measures Program (DOLE-AMP) to assist displaced workers engage in livelihood projects. The program extended to 2,669 workers displaced by typhoon "Frank." Efforts were also set in place to mainstream the concerns of women and young workers including child laborers. For young workers, the DOLE initiated the Youth Entrepreneurship Support project to mold new entrants to the labor force who could not be absorbed by wage employment become entrepreneurs and possibly employ members of working youth organizations. To date, the DOLE in eight regions have already partnered with the academe, LGUs, and other government and non-government organizations for the implementation of the project. Parents of child laborers were given the option to avail of Kabuhayan para sa Magulang ng Batang Manggagawa (KaSaMa) in line with the objective in child labor prevention and elimination. "In Region 3 (Central Luzon), 20 parents of child workers received almost P150,000 KaSaMa funds for their training-cum-production on dressmaking, salted eggs and balut-making, and meat processing," DOLE said. DOLE also launched two similar emergency employment projects, the Integrated Services for Livelihood and Advancement of the Fisher folks (ISLA) and Tulong Hanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged Workers (TUPAD). Towards the end of the year, Labor and Employment Secretary Marianito D. Roque also launched the youth education-youth employability (YE-YE project) through an agreement with Jollibee fast food chain. Under the program, children of IS workers and child laborers have an opportunity to pursue a post-secondary course through tuition fee advances while being afforded essential training at the workplace. The projects targets to assist some 100,000 children of IS workers in their studies in the next two years. DOLE also sought to bridge employment assistance to new entrants to the labor force and poor but deserving students. Meanwhile, DOLE's National Reintegration Center for OFWs (NRCO) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) extended reintegration services to returning OFWs to help them sustain their earnings from abroad. These services included the provision of business and investment counseling, referral to banks and microfinance credit facilities, financial management and investment opportunities, and livelihood support. "NRCO assisted a total of 25,541 OFWs and their families as well since its establishment in March 2007. The Center also extended assistance to 325 OFWs in Taiwan who lost their jobs due to the financial crisis. Services provided the OFWs included job search for local or overseas placement, issuance of TESDA Training Certificates of Commitment, and Certificates of Eligibility for livelihood assistance. Legal services were also given to those seeking refund of placement fees and or deferment of loan payments," DOLE said. OWWA, on the other hand, approved 1,008 livelihood projects of 72,798 OFWs and their dependents. The agency's Groceria Project also granted 818 OFW Family Circles with 17,917 members with interest-free loans in the form of P50,000 worth of grocery items and goods for their OFW Grocerias, it said. Abroad, DOLE secretary Marianito Roque said that despite the worldwide crunch, Filipinos remain the first choice in many work opportunities abroad. "Notwithstanding the worldwide crunch, the year 2008 culminates as another record year for global OFW preference," Roque said. He said that so far, more than 1.221 million OFWs have been deployed in over 190 host countries, in the first eleven months of 2008. These OFWs remitted more than $13.7 billion to the local economy from January to October this year, as confirmed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. "As the year 2008 proceeds to 2009, we project the global OFW deployment figure to further approach the 1.5 million level, and global OFW remittances to reach US$16 billion to $17 billion during the entire year," Roque said. Citing figures from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, he said 1,221,829 OFWs were deployed worldwide from January 1 to November 30 this year, 24 percent higher than the 982,286 OFWs deployed in the same period in 2007. Of the total deployed, around 75 percent or 916,606, are land-based workers, while the remaining 25 percent, or 302,223, are seafarers. The POEA added that the successful deployment of more than a million OFWs globally during the year had been complemented by the new markets that opened up in Canada, Romania, Bulgaria, Dubai, Taiwan, Qatar and Australia. Roque added the POEA reported that from January to October 2008, professionals and skilled workers accounted for the vast majority, or 90 percent of the total new hired OFWs, with those in low end skills, such as laborers, constituting the remaining 10 percent. Globally, Roque said that the 10 major destinations of new hired OFWs during the year's first 10 months are the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (which absorbed 61,164 or 34.5 percent of the new hires), the United Arab Emirates (34,595 or 19.5%), Qatar (21,352 or 12.0%), Taiwan (14,660 or 8.3%), Kuwait (8,326 or 4.7%), Hong Kong (7,912 or 4.5%), Canada (4,007 or 2.3%), Bahrain (2,168 or 1.2%), Australia (1,858 or 1.0%), while other destinations accounted for 19,366 or 10.9%. On the local front, Roque said the number of employed persons, grew by another 861,000 to reach 34.533 million in October 2008, from 33.672 million in the same period last year based on the National Statistics Office's (NSO) Labor Force Survey. Roque also said that the DOLE-supervised network of Public Employment Service Offices (PESOs) nationwide placed in all types of jobs some 517,667 job seekers, achieving a total placement rate of 71% out of the total number of job seekers referred. On the other hand, he said DOLE pushed salient employment facilitation thrusts which reinforced the strength of productive opportunities locally and globally. He said the DOLE's Phil-Jobnet system supported the placement of jobseekers in the entire 2008, by enabling them to search for work in listed job openings, and to post their resume in the online database free of charge. DOLE also efficiently maintained its Trabaho... I-text Mo short messaging system (SMS) facility, accessible by typing "Trabaho" and sending it to 2476 for Smart subscribers, or 2376 for Globe. Abroad, he said the Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs) in more than 30 strategic OFW host destinations worldwide are figuring greatly and effectively in the global preference for our workers. He cited the preparations being undertaken for the Philippine-Australian cooperation on the recruitment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). This is remarkable considering that, notwithstanding the global crisis, South Australia is bent on recruiting OFWs to address its perennial skills shortage. A DOLE technical team and its counterpart from South Australia's Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) have been in consultations for the forging of a pertinent Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), he said. Roque also forged with Qatar Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Dr. Sultan bin Hassan Al-Dhabit, the Additional Protocol to the older Labor Memorandum of Agreement. This adopted a Standard Employment Contract (SEC) in view of the preference of Qatar, a major host country, for OFWs, and the need to ensure their protection and welfare. Roque also led the Philippine Delegation to the successful Global Forum on Migration and Development in Manila recently, and firmed up the international cooperation to protect workers amidst the demand for their skills. He and UAE labor minister Saqr Ghobash launched the joint "Pilot Project: Administration of Temporary Contractual Employment from India and the Philippines to the United Arab Emirates" which takes into account the full employment cycle from recruitment to reintegration. Government also dispatched eight marketing missions so far which ensured emerging opportunities for OFWs in the new markets including Canada, Romania, Bulgaria, Dubai, Taiwan, Qatar and Australia. DOLE also boosted the ongoing drive against illegal recruitment, in cooperation with the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the Philippine National Police (PNP), as well as the Local Government Units (LGUs). POEA in tandem with law enforcement agencies and LGUs assisted 1,662 illegal recruitment victims from January to November 2008, and filed 320 IR cases, with 94 surveillance conducted, resulting in 92 illegal recruiters apprehended, and nine establishments closed. Roque also noted that in certain cases, the Philippines has resorted to the issuance of necessary ban against OFW deployment in areas faced with crisis. On the other hand, the DOLE claimed it did not have to prepare or formulate new programs to respond to the extraordinary needs of the times as most of the contingency plans were regular fare of the Department aimed at alleviating workers' plight. "If at all, only critical adjustments have to be made to make the policies and programs more responsive and appropriate to DOLE clients," it said. Last Labor Day, Roque instructed all the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) to fast-track sectoral consultations in their respective areas for the immediate issuance of new wage orders. Roque's directive came in the wake of increasing prices of oil products and rice even while the last wage orders have yet to reach the reglementary one-year period before a new one can be issued. Also, Roque formed a body that would identify and help implement non-wage measures with labor and management. Unique programs proposed by the DOLE included the establishment of day-care centers especially in workplaces with more women workers. Employers who establish and operate corporate-based day-care centers can also gain tax incentives under Republic Act 8980 or "An Act Promulgating a Comprehensive Policy and a National System for Early Child Care and Development, Providing Funds Therefore and For Other Purposes." On labor safety, the Department conducted a nationwide inspection blitz in the first half of the year, resulting in the awarding or settlement of more than P37 million due to correction of labor standards violations at various establishments. It benefited more than 18,000 workers, Roque said. He added that a nationwide inspection blitz goal covering over 30,000 companies in the country's 16 regions had been set for the entire 2008. From January to May alone, the lean corps of 142 labor inspectors were able to inspect 8,555 establishments with close to 205,000 total number of workers. This year, the DOLE recognized 48 firms for occupational safety and health programs, which he said prevented more than 900,000 cases of disabling accidents and almost 70,000 man-days lost which could have happened in their work sites had they not complied with OSH standards and other labor laws. "Equating them to actual costs, the 48 firms were able to save more than P20 million in manpower replacements and medical expenses," DOLE said. - GMANews.TV