The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said a total of 36,446 workers from the tourism sector have applied for the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) financial assistance nationwide as of December 4.
Data released by the Labor department on Sunday showed that Region 7 reported the most number of applicant workers with 10,719 (30%) applications followed by NCR (6,217 or 17%), Region 6 (3,783 or 10%), Region 9 (2,675 or 7%) and Region 4A (2,657 or 7%).
The least number of applicant workers are from Region 8 with a total of only 155 applicants.
According to DoLE, of the more than 36,000 applications, 8,146 were denied and 12,121 were approved.
The Labor department said the payment for 7,477 workers amounting to Php 37,385,000 were remitted to payment centers with a remaining 4,644 for disbursement.
Last week, the DoLE urged displaced tourism workers in the formal and informal sectors to avail themselves of the financial assistance and the emergency employment program of the government.
In a Joint Memorandum Circular, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III and Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, said tourism industry workers, such as tour guides and service staff, may receive a one-time financial aid amounting to P5,000 under the CAMP.
It said workers may receive the assistance provided that they are employed under a Department of Tourism (DOT)-accredited Primary Tourism Enterprise, DOT-accredited Secondary Tourism Enterprise, Local Government Unit-licensed (non-DOT-accredited) Primary Tourism Enterprise, or a registered Community-Based Tourism Organization (CBTO).
As for workers in the informal sector whose means of livelihood are tourism-related, DoLE said, they may apply for inclusion in the cash-for-work program under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) Program.
The CAMP and TUPAD are being implemented in fulfillment of the goals of Republic Act No. 11494 or the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act, which was enacted on September 11 to address the widespread economic and societal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.