Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 28) — The Department of Labor and Employment said nearly one million displaced workers have benefitted from the government’s emergency employment program.
In a statement, the DOLE said around 930,000 informal sector workers who lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the string of typhoons that hit the country, were given temporary work under Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers or TUPAD program as of December 28.
Of the total, 797,222 were already paid, while 141,989 still have ongoing work. These workers got a total of ₱4.5 billion in wages.
Karen Trayvilla, director of DOLE’s Bureau of Workers with Special Concern, said the beneficiaries may still exceed one million since there are funds still available under the ₱6-billion budget from the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act.
Trayvilla added that the program has been adjusted depending on the needs of the region. Under TUPAD, beneficiaries are paid for work done for a minimum of 10 days to a maximum of 16 days based on the requirements of their area, she added.
Due to the global health crisis, many workers lost theirs job because of the implementation of lockdowns. Based on government data, unemployment rate was at 8.7% in October, easing from July’s 10% but still worse than October 2019’s 4.6%. This translated to 3.8 million people who do not have work.
To address this, the government realigned its budget to fund programs that aim to provide assistance to Filipinos, while also slowly relaxing quarantine restrictions for the resumption of economic activity.
