Story & photo by Recto Mercene
IN the not-so-distant past, cities, urban centers and populated areas had guilds. These are medieval associations of merchants, artisans and skilled workers who provided their necessary expertise to fix and maintain a household, business, office or even an entire city, to keep them efficiently functioning.
Most of these guilds have vanished, as the things they used to fix or maintain were rendered as obsolete, while others have been reduced to insignificance with the advent of new inventions and technologies.
Others were overtaken by the inexorable march of progress aided by automation and computers. That is why we have ready-to-wear clothes, shoes, and other personal accouterments that used to be custom-made.
The dearth of artisans, or craft workers, has become a worldwide phenomenon. Germany’s Grohe, AG Human Resource Board Member Michael Mager brought this state of affairs to our attention. (Grohe is one of the world’s top brands of bathroom fixtures that guilds used to install.)
Today, he said, there is a growing demand for pipefitters and plumbers when customers purchase their products that needed fitting in their homes by an employee of the manufacturer or the dealer.
Plumbers and fitters are now getting to be rare species of their profession, and the available ones are either difficult to obtain, or charge sky-high.
(In the United Kingdom calling-in a plumber to clear a clogged toilet would set a homeowner back by about £50 to £80 [P3,500 to P5,600—much more if he is employed to install a complete set of bathroom faucets or toilet fixtures.])
For the modern age
IT was because of the above-mentioned issues that Germany, in cooperation with the Philippines, has established the Dual Education and Training for Economic Development, where students are taught not only academic subjects, but also vocational learning that are focused on current skills required for the modern age.
Various experts recently gathered in a high-level colloquium under the patronage of the Embassy of Germany in Manila, with the support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Bundesministerium für wirtschaftlich Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung, or BMZ) and participated by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) through its K-to-12 PLUS Project and the Don Bosco ONE-Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Project.
Among the guests were Ambassador of Germany to the Philippines Dr. Gordon Kricke, PCCI Chairman and President of Integrated Computer Systems George Barcelon, Project Coordinator Andreas Dernbach and Mager.
Germany and other European countries with a long-standing tradition in dual education and training repeatedly exhibit lower youth unemployment figures.
Kricke elaborated: “The key success factor is the effective and trustful collaboration between governments and industries through apprenticeship systems blending classroom education with the on-the-job training that equip young people with practical labor market skills.”
Fr. Jose Dindo Vitug, SDB, of Don Bosco further elaborated that TVET offers a 15-month technical-vocational training, comprising of 10 months in-campus academic learning and five months on-the-job training. The training program is also open to students who have completed Grade 10 and graduates of Grade 12.
The oblate explained that Don Bosco has been into TVET for the past four decades, or since the 1970s, and is now working in partnership with local industries.
Last year Don Bosco started ONE as “One Network,” funded by BMZ, “so that we could channel more resources [and] industries…to standardize and improve the TVET delivery.”
“Don Bosco isn’t only [in] Makati; there are many Don Bosco schools, and we would want to level up the training in different Don Bosco institutions,” Vitug added.
‘Triple effect’
THE BusinessMirror asked Barcelon on the number of Filipino skilled workers the collaboration would generate, as the country is currently experiencing a construction boom and many skilled workers are needed.
He said the PCCI has suggested that companies doing business in the Philippines must help produce skilled workers by training them on the spot.
“We do see foreign investments coming in, and we realized there is not enough skill set for the industry. It would be a good collaboration for them to come in, and the government should incentivize the training.”
The PCCI president claimed that although the Duterte administration has embarked on a “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program, those needing more skilled workers are in the manufacturing, agricultural and tourism sectors.
“Those are the three key areas that can create jobs, and we need the skill sets to go along with it,” Barcelon noted.
He mentioned, while Thailand has 40 million tourists, the Philippines currently only has a quarter of its Asean neighbor’s numbers. “So we must concentrate on low-hanging fruits, where the skills are not necessary high, and there is that [so-called] triple effect. When there are more tourists, the service sectors would definitely benefit.”
PCCI President Ma. Alegria Sibal-Limjoco said the country is thankful to the German government for their continuous support through numerous technical and financial cooperation projects, as well as development cooperation.
“The challenge now is to make sure the government of the Philippines and its private sector will move toward joint responsibility for dual education and training in the country,” Sibal-Limjoco concluded.
The ONE TVET Project aims to help marginalized young people from poor parts of the population to find decent employment with an adequate income through improved and harmonized vocational training offerings.
The overall objective of the K-to-12 PLUS Project, meanwhile, is to increase the employability and income of Filipino youth as well as their families, then match the needs of companies for mid- to high-level qualified employees.
Panel discussions on the two success factors of dual education and training in the Germany—the Tripartite Social Partnerships as well as Sharing of Costs and Benefits among the Stakeholders—featured Mager, Employers Confederation of the Philippines President Donald Dee and Federation of Free Workers Vice President for External Affairs Isidro Antonio Asper.
Image credits: Recto Mercene