More than 600,000 Bicolanos benefited from the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged Workers (TUPAD) program of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) since 2022.

During Tuesday’s Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas forum at Iniego Hotel here, DOLE-Bicol Assistant Director Imelda Romanillos said 654,412 individuals from six provinces were provided emergency employment.

“The 654,412 beneficiaries were provided with temporary employment under DOLE-TUPAD in the amount of PHP2.91 billion of wages paid,” she said.

TUPAD is a community-based package of assistance that provides emergency employment for displaced workers, underemployed and seasonal workers for a maximum of 30 days, depending on the nature of the work to be performed.

“The local chief executives are our partners in the implementation of the payout. They are there during the payout, they will do the payout and they will just liquidate with us to ensure our payments are done. It is expected that when DOLE is there, the head of an LGU (local government unit) is also there,” she said.

Romanillos said DOLE is mandated to formulate and implement policies and programs and serve as the policy-advisory arm of the Executive branch in the field of labor and employment.

She said aside from cleaning communities, they already coordinated with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for a reforestation program, with the National Irrigation Administration for an irrigation program, with the Department of Social Welfare and Development for the food and water project, and with the Department of Education for classroom and school beautifications.

“Varied natures of work can be implemented in TUPAD depending on what was proposed by our partners. That’s why we collaborated with other government agencies for more projects that can be used in TUPAD,” she said.

Romanillos emphasized that only one member per family can be a beneficiary of TUPAD in a year.

For other programs of DOLE, she said a total of 11,497 Bicolano youths were assisted in the amount of PHP46.7 million under the Special Program for Employment of Students.

“The program aims to help students earn extra income to support their education while gaining valuable work experience in various industries and agencies,” she said.

For the Government Internship Program, 14,845 young individuals were deployed to various government agencies.

Romanillos also said that 16,536 Bicolano beneficiaries received the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program with PHP329,408,505.49 funds released.

Meanwhile, DOLE-Bicol registered 3,870 Bicolanos under the Single-Entry Approach to provide speedy, impartial, inexpensive and accessible settlement procedures for all labor issues.

Likewise, there are a total of 120 Public Employment Service Offices and 32 job placement offices across the region.

Under DOLE’s Labor Inspection Program, 4,405 establishments were inspected to secure a higher level of compliance with labor standards, occupational safety and health standards, and other social legislations. (PNA)