DOLE: 1M job vacancies this year

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is eyeing one million jobs for new graduates, displaced workers and other jobseekers this year.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said she already ordered all DOLE regional offices to work with employers in their areas of jurisdiction to intensify job promotion programs.

“I have issued a memorandum to DOLE regional directors to intensify the use of the Phil-Jobnet to reach out to the jobless and make the job vacancies in the system available to them,” Baldoz said.

Phil-JobNet is an Internet-based job and applicant matching system managed by the labor department.

“Our target is to upload more than one million jobs at any given time,” Baldoz said.

She said each regional office should set a quota of vacancies to meet the target of one million vacancies.

Baldoz also urged the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) to coordinate with DOLE in selecting the beneficiaries of the government’s Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES).

She said the national government allotted an additional P168 million for the SPES program to allow the employment of 52,000 more poor students this year.

She urged PESO managers to “discard” the manual system of providing assistance to jobseekers and just use Phil-Jobnet, which is a faster mode of providing employment.

With Phil-Jobnet, Baldoz said, PESOs and DOLE regional offices nationwide could provide assistance to local contractors faster in terms of identifying needed and available skills for community-based employment projects in the different regions.

Baldoz also ordered the DOLE’s Bureau of Local Employment to present an enhanced version of the Phil-Jobnet as well as the computerized Skills Registry System and Manpower Data warehouse within the month.

Baldoz meanwhile reported that the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) is now implementing a computer-based walk-in system that allows Filipino seafarers to take licensure examinations anytime.

From May to December this year, Baldoz said marine deck officers could take the licensure examination every Tuesday or Wednesday while marine engineer officers can take their test on Wednesdays and Thursdays.