(INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / LYN RILLON)
MANILA, Philippines — Rizal 4th District Rep. Fidel Nograles is pushing for the passage of a bill seeking to establish a national jobs creation plan in a bid to help the country recover from the economic struggles brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We need to institutionalize and expand the current National Employment Recovery Strategy or NERS and establish a Jobs Creation Plan (JCP), which would help us address the various labor, social, and economic issues that have cropped up during the pandemic,” Nograles said in a statement issued on Thursday.
Nograles, who chairs the labor and employment committee, is sponsoring House Bill No. 8400 also known as the Trabaho Para sa Pilipino Act, which is up for voting in the Lower House next week.
Nograles said an inter-agency council for jobs and investments would be formed under this bill.
It will be tasked to analyze the country’s employment and labor market situation that would help them create JCPs.
He likewise revealed that this council include leaders among national government agencies such as the National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Labor and Employment, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Finance, Department of the Interior and Local Government, as well as representatives from private organizations, labor groups, marginalized sector and the informal sector.
“We are not only talking about around 2.18 million unemployed Filipinos that comprise our 4.2 percent unemployment rate, but also at least 15.68 million informal workers that have been affected by the closure of various businesses during the pandemic,” Nograles explained.
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