Vice President Leni Robredo’s Angat Buhay office launched a digital platform to help provide new job opportunities to Filipino workers who lost their jobs following the tough lockdowns.
In a statement issued on Thursday, September 10, Robredo announced that her office partnered with various employers and companies initiative called “Bayanihanhanapbuhay” which can be accessed on the online platform Sikap.PH. This platform also serves as the job hiring website.
“Layunin ng inisyatibong ito na maghandog ng plataporma upang mapadali para sa mga kababayan nating nawalan ng o naantala ang kabuhayan dahil sa pandemya na maghanap ng oportunidad na makapagtrabahong muli,” Robredo said.
“Kaya nitong mga nakaraang linggo, nakipagpulong ang ating Tanggapan sa iba’t ibang employers upang alamin ang kanilang job openings at mai-post ito sa https://sikap.ph. Libre ang platapormang ito para sa mga naghahanap ng trabaho, gayundin sa mga employers,” she added.
She also attached a set of infographics of guidelines on how both the employer and worker could apply and join the Sikap.PH platform.
Robredo said that the platform currently has 2,796 job postings. She also assured that these job openings will continue to grow as more employers will partner and cooperate with them.
Among the companies that participated in this project include:
- Elevatech
- EMS Services Philippines, Inc. (ESPI)
- M. Consunji, Inc.
- Lots’a Pizza, Concentrix
- Empire East Land Holdings
- AECOM Philippines
- GET Philippines
- McBride Corporation
- Omni Petroleum Corp
- Solarwinds Software Asia PTE LTD – Philippines Branch
“Para sa mga kumpanyang interesadong makipagbayanihan sa ating Tanggapan, maaaring ipadala ang inyong mga detalye sa bayanihanapbuhay@ovp.gov.ph,” Robredo said.
The interface of Sikap.PH is user-friendly with details such as the type of contracts and the location provided at the home page.
During her previous national addresses, Robredo had campaigned to help Filipinos recover from financial losses, particularly small to medium businesses that faced closures, amid the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic.
“Buo ang loob ko. Sa pananalig, sa paninindigan, at higit sa lahat, sa pagkakaisa, madadaig natin ang krisis na ito. Tiwala ako: kaya natin ito,” Robredo said last August 24.
Balik trabaho czar?
Meanwhile, Sen. Risa Hontiveros also urged the national government to appoint a “Balik trabaho czar” as part of the team of “COVID-19 czars,” who comprise government officials assigned to ramp up the efforts during the global health crisis.
Hontiveros made this remark during the Senate hearing with the country’s economic managers under the Development Budget Coordination Council last Thursday.
“Tutal mahilig ang Malacañang sa pag-aapoint ng czar sa iba’t ibang bahagi ng Covid-19 response, sana ay may italaga din na ‘Balik Trabaho Czar’ na magsisikap na ibalik ang trabaho ng milyong-milyong Pilipino ngayong panahon ng krisis,” Hontiveros said.
Citing government data, she bared that roughly 4.6 million Filipinos were unemployed since July 2020.
Early September, the data from Philippine Statistics Authority revealed that the number of Filipinos without job eased to 10% from a record high rate of 17.7% in April.
RELATED: Philippine jobless rate hits record 17.7% in April due to COVID-19 pandemic
The STAR reported that employment conditions in the National Capital Region worsened in July despite this development.
The Philippines has also entered into the worst economic recession since 1981.
Hontiveros perceived that the government is not doing enough to address the unemployment crisis.
“Kung hindi natin maagapan ang problema sa unemployment, marami ang magugutom, hindi makakapag-aral at hindi makakuha ng gamutan na kanilang kailangan. This is why we need a ‘Balik Trabaho Czar’ who will take a hands-on approach to solving the unemployment crisis before it gets worse,” she said.