TESDAMAN alerts DTI and DOLE on lowering Alert Level 1

Sen. Joel "TESDAMAN" Villanueva welcomed the news from the Department of Trade and Industry around half a million jobs will be generated with an eased Alert Level 1 restrictions in the country.

"This is a loud and clear alert signal for our workforce. The lowering of restrictions as well as COVID-19 cases in the country is great news for our unemployed Filipinos. We should help our workforce in bringing back the vibrance in our economy," Villanueva said.

Based on the latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority last December 2021, the Philippines has a 6.6% unemployment rate which is equivalent to 3.27 million unemployed Filipinos.

Villanueva also called on the Department of Labor and Employment to ensure that the reported 500,00 job openings that DTI mentioned should be immediately filled up.

"Let's make sure that our workforce is ready and able to take on these job opportunities. We should make them feel that the reopening of the country's economy is for their own benefit," he said.

The chair of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development said that the government should support workers as the economy reopens. This includes the ease of processing requirements and documents for job applications.

Villanueva also called on both the DOLE and DTI to protect workers coming back to work under Alert Level 1.

"Aside from still being in a pandemic, we expect that traffic and problems related to public transportation will return when our economy reopens. We have learned that these problems are time wasting and exhausting, which is why we should continue giving our workers the option to work from home as long as they can be productive," he said.

"Telecommuting or working from home helps ease the problems caused by daily commute and traffic, especially with the recent and unending increases in the price of fuel," the senator added.

Before the pandemic, Filipinos spent an estimated 257 hours (10 days and 17 hours) in rush hour traffic for the year 2019, according to the TomTom Traffic Index Report.

Villanueva added that flexible work arrangements help lower cases of COVID-19 because of decreased physical contact in workplaces. He added that working from home eases the congestion in public transportation that could still be sources of super spreader events for the virus.

"Our new normal is a combination of work-from-home and working face-to-face. We pushed for the passage of the Telecommuting Law even before the pandemic to establish mechanisms and systems to support work-from-home and hybrid work set-ups for businesses and employees," he said.

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DTI at DOLE, inalerto ni TESDAMAN sa pagbaba ng Alert Level 1 sa bansa

Ikinatuwa ni Sen. Joel TESDAMAN Villanueva ang balita ng Department of Trade and Industry na may tinatayang kalahating milyong trabaho ang ihahatid ng pagbaba ng Alert Level 1 sa bansa.

"This is a loud and clear alert signal for our workforce. Magandang balita para sa mga walang trabaho ang pagbaba ng Alert Level at kaso ng COVID-19 sa bansa, kaya tulungan natin ang ating mga manggagawa na ibalik ang sigla ng ating ekonomiya," sabi ni Villanueva.

Base sa pinakahuling datos ng Philippine Statistics Authority noong Disyembre 2021, nasa 6.6% ang unemployment rate ng bansa, katumbas ng 3.27 milyong Pilipino na walang trabaho.

Hinimok din ni Villanueva ang Department of Labor and Employment na siguraduhing mapupunuan agad ng mga nangangailangan ng trabaho ang humigit kumulang na 500,000 na trabahong nabanggit ng DTI.

"Siguraduhin po natin ang kahandaan at kwalipikasyon ng ating mga manggagawa para mga trabahong naghihintay para sa kanila. Ipadama po natin sa kanila na ang pagbubukas ng ekonomiya ay para rin sa kanilang pag-asenso," sabi ni Villanueva.

Dagdag ng chair ng Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development na kailangang tugunan ng gobyerno ang mga pangangailangan ng mga manggagawa sa pagbubukas ng ekonomiya. Kabilang dito ang mabilisang pagproseso ng mga dokumentong kakailanganin para makapag-apply sa trabaho.

Sinabi rin ni Villanueva na bigyan pa rin ng atensyon ng DOLE at DTI ang proteksyon ng mga manggagawa sa ilalim ng Alert Level 1.

"Maliban sa may pandemya pa rin tayo, inaasahan rin po natin na babalik ang traffic at problema sa public transportation sa pagbubukas muli ng ating ekonomiya. Natuto na po tayo na ubos-oras at lakas ang mga ganitong mga problema, kung kaya dapat ipagpatuloy ang option ang ating mga mangagagawa na magtrabaho mula sa kanilang bahay basta kaya nilang maging produktibo," sabi ng senador.

"Naiibsan din po ng telecommuting ang mga dati nang problema sa pagpunta sa trabaho gaya ng araw-araw na commute at traffic, lalo na ngayong walang tigil ang pagtaas ng presyo ng gasolina," sabi ni Villanueva.

Bago magpandemya, itinatayang halos halos 257 oras (10 araw at 17 oras) ang ginugol ng mga Pilipino sa rush hour traffic para sa taong 2019, ayon sa TomTom Traffic Index Report.

Dagdag ni Villanueva na matutulungan ng flexible working arrangements gaya ng work-from-home ang pagpanatili natin ang pagbaba ng mga kaso ng COVID-19 dahil mababa ang physical contact sa mga opisina. Sabi niya, maiibsan ng flexible work arrangements ang dami ng taong gumagamit ng pampublikong sasakyan na maaari pa ring panggalingan ng "super spreader event" ng virus.

"Ang new normal po natin ay ang kombinasyon ng work-from-home at face-to-face na pagtatrabaho. Sinikap po nating ipasa ang Telecommuting Law or Work-From-Home Law bago pa man ang pandemya para magkaroon ng mekanismo at sistema na nagsusuporta sa work-from-home at hybrid na work set-up para sa mga negosyo at manggagawa," dagdag niya.