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Legarda defends 2024 DOLE budget: Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda sponsors the proposed 2024 budget of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) before during plenary session Wednesday, November 15, 2023. For DOLE's Office of the Secretary, Legarda said they recommended a total budget of P38.78 billion, as indicated in the 2024 General Appropriations Bill (GAB). She also recommended that the Senate adopts the House of Representatives' budget proposal for the Institute of Labor Studies (P71.2 million), the National Labor Relations Commission (P1.436 billion), and the Professional Regulation Commission (P1.77 billion). The proposed budgets for the National Conciliation and Mediation Board and the National Wage and Productivity Commission, as indicated in the GAB, amounted to P283 million and P262.18 million, respectively. During the hearing, the Senate delved into the importance of labor unions in the country. Legarda said labor unions help voice out concerns of employees. “We are always after the welfare of our workers. After all they are the machines that run our economy. We need to take care of our human capital,” Legarda said. (Joseph Vidal / Senate PRIB)