TACLOBAN CITY –– At least 227 workers from this city lost their jobs after business establishments either shut down or downsized their number of employees due to restrictions caused by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Katherine Peliño of the city’s Public Employment Service Office (PESO) said the number of retrenched workers covered the months of July and August 2020 and involved 43 establishments.
The number, she said, could reach “thousands” since many establishments did not report about the retrenchment of their workers.
“While on record, we have 227 workers who lost their jobs during this pandemic, we can say that the number could be higher, even in the thousands, since our survey covered only the months of July and August,” she said.
The survey was suspended due to the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the city.
Peliño said their office was trying to help the unemployed.
“Those retrenched during this COVID-19 pandemic were given an assurance by their employers that they would be rehired once everything returns to normal,” she said.