The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is ramping up its “training cum production” program to ensure continued livelihood opportunities for fishermen and other workers displaced by a recent oil spill in the coastal waters of this province.

In an interview on Wednesday, Rameses Torres, a senior labor and employment officer at DOLE’s Oriental Mindoro provincial office, said a total of 318 displaced workers are presently undergoing training in various skills, and this number will grow before the week’s end.

Some 218 displaced workers are currently being trained in Bansud town, and 100 are being schooled in Bulalacao town.

Torres said two separate groups from Bansud started their classes on small engine repair and organic farming on June 13.

In Bulalacao, the 100 trainees are enrolled either in carpentry, masonry, or motor vehicle driving classes.

Meanwhile, a group of 17 individuals from Calapan are scheduled to begin their masonry training on June 16.

The DOLE’s provincial office remains willing to accommodate additional trainees if more qualified workers from oil spill-affected villages signify their interest in learning any of the skills being offered, Torres said.

He said the Technical Education and Skills and Development Authority (TESDA) is providing the teaching staff for the program, while DOLE is providing trainees’ daily stipend.

“TESDA is our partner because they have the pool of instructors. We (DOLE) pay the trainees PHP365 per day or PHP5,325 for their attendance in a 15-day training program. But some of the classes can last as long as 38 days,” Torres said in Filipino.

Torres, who is also the focal person in DOLE’s Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) in the province, explained that prospective trainees are first screened at their respective local government units (LGUs) to ensure they are qualified to take the various courses being offered.

He said those who complete any of the courses are qualified to seek National Certification 2 (NC2) eligibility from TESDA, and if they pass, can apply to receive “starter kits” from DOLE.

These starter kits consist of tools and other equipment they will need to earn money from their newly-acquired skills.

For her part, Naomi Lyn Abellana, director of DOLE-Region 4B, said the labor department’s training cum production initiative must be accelerated because the Department of Social Welfare and Development is winding down its cash transfer program for oil spill-affected workers.

“The focus is shifting from giving them (oil spill-hit workers) aid to teaching them additional livelihood skills,” she said. (PNA)