Subic job fair to provide 17,000 jobs for displaced Hanjin workers -DPWH exec

MANILA, Philippines – The government is offering 17, 000 jobs as “immediate response” to workers displaced from the Subic shipyard of financially troubled Korean shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines (HHIC-Phil), a public works official said Wednesday.

Anna Mae Lamentillo, chair of the Build, Build, Build said government would hold a jobs caravan in Subic on February 9.

Lamentillo said Department of Finance, Department of Budget and Management, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), Department of Public Works and Highways(DPWH),  Department of Transportation, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of National Defense and the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) would be joining the caravan.

“What is indicated on our portal is at least 17,000 jobs and we expect that at least 75 contractors will be participating,” she said during an economic briefing in Malacañang.

Lamentillo cited figures from the labor department, saying that Hanjin workers were decreased by  3,745 from 17,307 in March 2108.

“So we expect that the Jobs, Jobs, Jobs caravan will be able to provide jobs on the displaced workers,” she said.

Based on their profiling, she said  carpentry has the highest number of skilled workers at 1,801, representing 65 percent of the  displaced workers, followed by welders at 661 or 24 percent and computer workers at 180 or about 6 percent.

“The profiling is ongoing  we are also conducting pre-registration for all the affected employees but we’d also like to invite public to participate in the Jobs, Jobs, Jobs caravan,” she said.

Hanjin had earlier sought a court-assisted relief from its financial woes.

The Olongapo City Regional Trial Court (RTC) on Monday approved the rehabilitation of Hanjin, allowing the South Korean shipbuilder a reprieve from paying its huge debts.  /muf