Millions of Filipino workers have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic this year.
The last Job Displacement Monitoring Report released by the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) showed that as of Oct. 25, 3.4 million workers have been displaced by the pandemic.
These workers were adversely affected following the implementation of flexible work arrangements (FWAs) and temporary closure (TC) of 121,909 establishments from March 2020 to Oct. 25.
Of the 121, 909 establishments, 36,851 implemented FWAs affecting 1,488,285 workers. The 86,954 establishments that implemented temporary closure, on the other hand, affected 2,094,036 workers.
The report also showed that a total of 285,650 workers have been displaced nationwide from 17,300 establishments from January 2020 to October.
Majority of these establishments or 15,549 reduced workforce affecting 256,285 workers. The 1,751 establishments that permanently closed affected 29,365 workers.
The National Capital Region registered the most number of displaced workers with 152,951, followed by Calabarzon with 44,634 and Central Luzon with 27,808.
In terms of major industry group, most affected workers were under administrative and support service activities with 62,208 and other service activities with 43,045.
As to establishment size, majority of the establishment which adopted FWAs were small enterprises or 16,520. A greater number of establishments under micro enterprises implemented TC or 46,971.
Retrenchment was mostly observed in small enterprises or 4,305 while a higher number of incidence of permanent closure was noted in micro enterprises or 646.
DoLE Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay said the displacement figure is the highest that they have recorded. "This is the highest we recorded. Previous crisis such as Asian and global financial crisis recorded only about 80,000 to 90,000 job displacement based on our establishments reporting system," she said.
To help cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Labor department extended cash assistance to both the formal and informal sectors, including overseas Filipino workers, through its social amelioration programs.
These programs are the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) for formal sector, Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) for informal sector, and the Abot Kamay ang Pagtulong (AKAP) program for overseas Filipino workers.
CAMP is a one-time financial assistance of P5,000 to affected workers in private establishments.
TUPAD is a temporary wage employment to workers in the informal sector who were displaced or whose earnings were affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
DoLE has also been extending a one-time P10,000 or $200 cash aid under the AKAP program to OFWs whose incomes were affected by the pandemic.
In their yearend report, the DoLE reported that 658,886 workers in the private sector were provided with P3.311 billion in assistance under the CAMP utilizing their regular fund.
Also, 423,511 workers in the informal sector were able to receive P1.591 billion in emergency employment under the TUPAD program.
Roughly P3.5 billion was disbursed in cash assistance to close to 350,000 OFWs displaced by the pandemic under the AKAP funded under Bayanihan 1.
The agency reported that under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act (Bayanihan 2), in which a total of P16.4 billion for cash assistance was allocated to DoLE, P4.1 billion was allotted under CAMP for formal sector workers, P300 million under CAMP for private educational institution workers, and P3.1 billion under CAMP for tourism sector workers; P6.2 billion for TUPAD for informal sector workers; P239 million for the DoLE Integrated Livelihood Program or DoLE Kabuhayan Program; P2 billion for AKAP; and P500 million for OWWA’s Emergency Repatriation Program.
The Labor department also conducted an online job fair and made available 21,000 jobs, both local and overseas.
More than 1,000 jobseekers were hired on the spot (HOTS) during the online job fair held Dec. 10 and 11.
The DoLE adopted a virtual job fair system in compliance with government restrictions on mass gatherings.
Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III said there is a very good prospect for OFWs as more countries are now looking to hire Filipino caregivers, nurses, other healthcare workers, including skilled drivers.
He identified these countries as Czech Republic, Romania, Poland, Germany, United Kingdom, Israel, and Japan.
According to the Labor chief, they just want to make sure that they will be safe from contamination when they are deployed.
International Labor Affairs Bureau (ILAB) Director Alice Visperas said as of Dec. 17, some 550,000 OFWs lost their jobs abroad – 370,000 were repatriated to their home provinces, 126,000 still waiting for their repatriation, and 82,000 opted to stay on-site.
The government started transporting OFWs en masse in May after COVID tests and quarantine.
The pandemic has also prompted the Labor department to issue labor advisories, policy orders, and memorandum circulars jointly with other agencies to protect the workers and help businesses cope with the crippling effect of the health crisis.