Over 7,000 more workers lost their jobs during the first week of implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR) and its surrounding provinces.
Citing its initial displacement report, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said this was the initial count of employees, who were rendered jobless either due to retrenchment or permanent closure of their companies during the said period.
Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay said the number of displaced workers on March 31, 2021 rose to 118,210 from just 111,000 on March 23, 2021.
“If we will look at our administrative data, [the displacement] was higher last week,” Tutay said during an online news briefing on Monday.
President Duterte has placed “NCR plus,” which includes Metro Manila, Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, and Bulacan, under ECQ from March 29 to April 4, 2021 in a bid to slow down the spike in the daily new novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases.
The lockdown, which was marked with stricter business and movement restrictions, was extended to April 5 to April 11, 2021 to further arrest the increase in infections in NCR plus.
NERS consultation
The labor official said they are still studying the overall impact of the ECQ to the country’s work force, but she said she expects figures will further lead to additional permanent displacements.
To address the increasing displacement during the pandemic, DOLE is currently conducting stakeholder consultation for the government’s National Employment Recovery Strategy (NERS).
Tutay said NERS is expected to lead to the reemployment of 1.6 million workers, who became permanently displaced last year, and reduce unemployment to 5 percent.
Among the highlights of NERS is DOLE’s proposed wage subsidy for employers, particularly micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME), which will allow them to retain their workers.
Tutay said the consultations for the crafting of the NERS would culminate in a Job Summit, which they will hold during the Labor Day next month.
Image credits: Muntinlupa-PIO