DOLE assures gov’t workers on rightsizing plan

FILE PHOTO: The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) building. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Sunday assured government workers about the government’s plan to rightsize the bureaucracy, saying the move may mean a streamlining of government work but not work force downsizing.

Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma made the assurance following the announcement made by the economic team of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. that it is reviving the move to rightsize the bureaucracy in a bid to save government funds. The announcement drew flak from various labor groups.

According to Laguesma, government workers should not be anxious about the proposal as it may not actually mean a downsizing of the government’s work force.

“When you talk of streamlining, it’s all about making work in a business easier and fruitful. On the other hand, structural reforms imply changes to the way the government works. I don’t see downsizing of the workforce in those definitions,” he said.

The rightsizing plan, said Laguesma, may only mean transfer of human resources from one office to another to make a system more effective.

“Let’s be more positive with rightsizing where the possibility of transferring or even hiring of more people by a government with lots of tasks to perform is very high,” Laguesma said.

He then assured that the DOLE would continue to commit to its mandate to promote the welfare of workers both in the private and public sectors.

“Whatever happens, DOLE will always champion the security and safety of our workers, whether they are government servants or employees of private institutions,” Laguesma said.

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