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Legarda appeals full support for DOLE’s 2023 budget: Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda sponsors the proposed P49.22 billion budget of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and its attached agencies late Tuesday, November 15, 2022. During the marathon plenary session, Legarda appealed to her colleagues to support the agency’s budget, saying that she had intensive meetings with DOLE officials and has heard of their efforts and vision to bolster the country's labor industry. "I think we have comprehensively discussed the issues and we would like to ensure that the issues on unemployment, underemployment, the plight of our Overseas Filipino Workers, and those who lost their jobs during the pandemic will all be helped with this budget. We will be happy if we receive amendments for the increase of the budget of these agencies," Legarda said. The senators also welcomed the return of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) to the DOLE as one of its attached agencies after being under the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) since 2018. (Voltaire F. Domingo/Senate PRIB)