Foreign chambers launch employment fair

MANILA, Philippines–Four foreign chambers of commerce is hoping to stem unemployment during the current economic downturn by holding an employment fair.

The Chambers Career Fair 2008 is organized by the Australian-New Zealand Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (AnzCham), the British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (BCCP), the Canadian Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (CanCham), and the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP).

The employment fair includes about 20 companies looking for new hires.

Some are member-companies of the four chambers of commerce.

In a presentation, AnzCham Executive Director Chris Ward said they hope to address unemployment and underemployment particularly of the recent college graduates by presenting companies looking to hire new employees.

Ward, who is also the Chambers Career Fair 2009 chairman, said that in a survey of 85 respondents from human resource directors to managers in different companies, 61 percent are “cautiously optimistic” about the current business situation.

Twenty-eight percent of these companies are not hiring this year.

But in the same survey, 18 percent of those surveyed would continue hiring people.

In addition, 22 percent of those surveyed said they have halted salary increases while only 15 percent said they have salary increases.

Ward also said that among the goals of the employment fair is to enable companies to have retraining programs with employees to better equip them with skills necessary to improve company operations.

The event would also showcase new “sunrise” businesses that employers can tap.

The Chambers Career Fair 2009 will be held on April 22 and 23 at the Glorietta Mall Activity Center in Makati City. –Alexander Villafania, INQUIRER.net