Emergency jobs for Ondoy victims—labor dep’t

MANILA, Philippines—(UPDATE) Victims hardest hit by typhoon Ondoy who lost their income and livelihood will be given “short-term and emergency wage employment” of at least 15 days to help them rebuild their lives, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque said Tuesday.

The Department of Labor and Employment will use its P15 million savings this year to provide jobs for at least 1,450 workers in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon), he said.

“It will serve as a bridging mechanism aimed at helping the beneficiaries cope while seeking to recover and regain their livelihood and income sources from the destruction brought about by “Ondoy.” he said.

Roque said the program will provide the beneficiaries, through the local government units (LGUs), with emergency work, particularly in clearing and de-clogging operations and reconstruction efforts like the repairs of damaged infrastructure such as school buildings, daycare center, drainage, irrigation system, etc.

He added that the LGUs will identify the reconstruction projects where the target beneficiaries will be engaged in, adding they will be paid the minimum daily wage during the program’s duration covering at least 15 days.

Roque said labor personnel in the three regions have been mobilized to identify target beneficiaries in the typhoon-damaged areas in the three regions in coordination with concerned local government units.

The program, which is usually being activated during trying times, targets to benefit 100 workers each in Marikina, Quezon City, Pasig, Pateros, and Taguig; 50 each in Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, and Valenzuela; and 50 each in Muntinlupa, San Juan, and Mandaluyong.

In Central Luzon, the program aims to assist 200 affected workers in Bulacan and another 100 in Pampanga. In Calabarzon, it seeks to help 150 affected workers in Cavite and another 100 affected workers in Rizal.

Roque said subsistence workers who lost their income and livelihood sources due to the calamity will be prioritized especially those whose properties were totally damaged and those formerly engaged in a particular craft or skill.

On top of this, Labor undersecretary Lourdes Trasmonte said the government would provide ‘livelihood grant” of a minimum of P5,000 each for the victims of the calamity.

The budget for this livelihood program, Trasmonte said, would be on top of the P15 million budget that would be used for the emergency employment.

She said applicants will just have to register with their regional offices to avail of their grant.

Applicants, she said, would just have to present any proof of their businesses before the calamity such as license or barangay certification .

“We have people who will monitor and who will check how they are going to use the funds that are released to our beneficiaries,” she said. Maila Ager, INQUIRER.net