The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is strengthening its skills training, job-matching, and wage improvement initiatives as the Marcos administration seeks to create better employment opportunities for Filipino workers, Malacañang said Thursday.
At a Palace press briefing, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had directed Labor and Employment Secretary Francis Tolentino to pursue programs that would help workers improve their skills and secure better pay.
“Sa utos ng Pangulo ay isinusulong ni Labor and Employment Secretary Francis Tolentino ang paggawa ng mga hakbang para sa upskilling at pagpapataas ng sweldo ng mga Pilipino,” Castro said.
Castro said among DOLE’s key workforce programs is the expansion of the nationwide Trabaho Agad job fairs, which aim to bring thousands of employment opportunities closer to jobseekers across the country.
The Trabaho Agad job fairs are large-scale simultaneous hiring activities participated in by hundreds of local and overseas employers. The events also provide one-stop-shop services for documentary requirements, including clearances and transactions with the National Bureau of Investigation, Social Security System, PhilHealth, and Pag-IBIG Fund.
DOLE is also implementing the Labor Education for Graduating Students program, which prepares students for employment before they formally enter the workforce.
Castro said the initiative is being complemented by DOLE’s stronger partnership with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority to expand training opportunities for Filipino learners and workers.
The labor department is also providing entrepreneurship training to beneficiaries of the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers Livelihood Program.
“Ayon sa ahensiya, napapanahon nang paunlarin ang labor force ng bansa at mag-invest sa employable skills para gawing future-ready ang Filipino workers,” Castro said.
“Dahil sa Bagong Pilipinas, katuwang ng pamahalaan ang lahat ng mga dakilang manggagawa,” she added.