The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has allocated PHP1.9 billion for the Tulong Panghanap-buhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) and PHP89 million for the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program (DILP) in the Ilocos Region this year.

In a phone interview Thursday, DOLE-llocos Region information officer Jenny Mapile said about PHP18 million has been used under the DILP from January to June this year as assistance to some 1,068 beneficiaries, who were given livelihood opportunities and training.

DILP helps vulnerable workers such as the self-employed, landless farmers, unpaid family workers, displaced workers, parents of child laborers and low-wage seasonal workers

In 2023, the program benefited some 13,584 Ilocos Region residents, who were provided PHP144.6 million worth of livelihood assistance.

For TUPAD, some 151,979 beneficiaries in the region have been provided with temporary wage employment in the first half of this year and DOLE disbursed around PHP558.7 million, Mapile said.

TUPAD beneficiaries earned PHP4,350 for 10-day work and were given personal protective equipment, hats, long sleeve shirts and insurance coverage.

Last year, there were 193,242 beneficiaries of TUPAD in the region, with PHP872.5 million worth of assistance.

TUPAD is a community-based emergency employment program that provides short-term jobs to displaced, underemployed, and seasonal workers.

“Malaking tulong ito para sa mga gastusin sa bahay lalo ngayon (This is huge help for the expenses at home especially during this time),” said Lilia Penuliar of Barangay Jimenez Mapandan town, Pangasinan and one of the TUPAD beneficiaries.

Meanwhile, some 3,747 interns have started working under the Government Internship Program (GIP), which has a duration of three to six months.

Under the program, students or fresh graduates may work in government agencies or local government units and get a stipend equivalent to 100 percent of the applicable minimum salary rate in the region.

Of the total interns, 519 have been hired as employees in the government and private sectors, Mapile said.

For the Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES), which provides students summer jobs in private and public sectors, some 943 youth were assisted through the program, and benefited from the about PHP16.8 million budget.

Under the program, employers will provide 60 percent of the students’ salaries while the balance of 40 percent will be shouldered by DOLE.

In 2023, some 4,032 students in the region benefited from SPES and about 5,720 from the GIP, Mapile said.

DOLE Ilocos regional director Exequiel Ronie Guzman, in a forum last week, said the employment rate in the region as of April 2024 is at 96.5 percent or 2.4 million labor force.

He said around 100,000 jobs were generated in the first quarter of the year through various means, including the 39 jobs fair of the DOLE that registered 7,855 applicants, with 1,319 persons hired-on-the spot.

He said retail and tourism are among the top job-generating industries in the region. (PNA)