PHL aims for 'inclusive growth' in labor plan

Philippine economic leaders on Wednesday unveiled a plan to ensure inclusive growth as world crude prices continue to rise and the global economy continues to sputter and more Filipinos are being displaced in politically volatile Middle East and North Africa. Inclusive growth refers to economic expansion creates more jobs and addresses poverty. The Department of Labor and Employment's Philippine Labor and Employment Plan (PLEP) 2011-2016, part of the Philippine Development Plan for 2011-2016, was presented on Wednesday at the National Labor and Employment Summit in Pasay City. The labor and employment plans are a welcome development, with the impact of the global financial crisis as a "wake up call" for the Philippines after its economic growth last year did not generate enough jobs and failed to address poverty, said International Labor Organization (ILO) country director Lawrence Jeff Johnson National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Director-General Cayetano Paderanga agreed, saying that the Labor Department should not only aim for a sustained high growth, but also "create employment and reduce poverty." "The government is now pushing for three strategies that will implement sustained high growth but at the same time provide equal access to economic growth for [a] broad sector of people and effective social safety nets for people who are vulnerable to the impact of climate change," he added. Rising above poverty requires avoiding trickle down growth or jobless growth and helping the country achieve the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations, Paderanga said. He pointed out that while government implemented the much-criticized conditional cash transfer program, it has also invested in education with the Education Department getting a 20 percent budget increase, Paderanga said. ILO’s Johnson, however, said that the Philippines should use a two-pronged approach to address employment problems. The approach would encompass providing skills training for those in the vulnerable sector who have no social benefits, regular salaries and decent working conditions, allowing them to enter the mainstream. Of the estimated 35 million economically active or working Filipinos, 42 percent are in the vulnerable employment sector, and 7 percent are unemployed. Those who belong to the 7 percent are mostly unskilled young people and whose education does not match the needs of local industries, Johnson said. For instance, nursing graduates who are unemployed because of an oversupply of nurses can fill the need for medical trasncriptionists, according to the ILO country director. Given the proper skills training, those in the vulnerable sector can fill the manpower needs of hotels and restaurants, he said. "There are different remedies to these problems and the government should strengthen social dialogue as a platform for workers and companies in finding solutions," he added. BC/VS, GMA News