MANILA, Philippines — At least 1,500 transport workers are set to benefit from the Department of Labor and Employment’s (DOLE) livelihood program for jeepney drivers and operators affected by the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP).
The livelihood initiative called “enTSUPERneur” includes “rice retailing, variety store and food stall establishment, animal raising, agricultural input provision, and tailoring, among others” for interested transport workers.
“Itong taon na ito, mayroon pong naka-lineup na 1,500 transport workers na nagnanais ding makakuha, na habang nagnanais silang sana tuloy-tuloy ang kanilang talagang pangunahing hanapbuhay, ay matulungan natin, magabayan natin na mayroon silang alternatibong pagkakakitaan,” said DOLE Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma over a Pulso ng Bayan interview on Wednesday.
(This year, there are 1,500 transport workers lined up who also wish to benefit, and as they desire to continue their primary livelihood, we may assist them and guide them in finding alternative opportunities.)
Meanwhile, the official also noted in the same interview that over 4,500 transport workers had benefited from the program from 2022 to June 2023.
This translates to P123 million released to assist the said beneficiaries, he added.
Aside from P30,000 in-kind assistance from “enTSUPERneur,” the livelihood package also includes “materials, inputs, and market linkages.”
When asked if the “enTSUPERneur” program could accommodate the estimated 30,000 drivers and operators who did not comply with the consolidation requirement of the PUVMP, Laguesma said that various government agencies are joining forces to pool resources for the program.
“Mayroon din nga pong direktiba ang ating Pangulong Bongbong Marcos Jr. na mag-converge ang mga departamento na mayroong resources na pwedeng pagsama-samahin at matulungan po yung mga apektadong manggagawa,” he said.
(President Bongbong Marcos Jr. has also issued a directive for the convergence of departments with available resources that can be pooled together to aid the affected workers.)
Meanwhile, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority has provided jeepney workers with skills development training under its “Tsuper Iskolar” Program since 2019, according to the DOLE.
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The PUVMP was launched on June 19, 2017, by the Department of Transportation through Department Order No. 2017-011.
One of its goals is to replace jeepney units 15 years old or older with those with Euro 4 or electrically powered engines.
The initial step of the program is the consolidation of public utility vehicle drivers and operators into either a cooperative or corporation, which already closed on December 31, 2023.
READ: PUVMP as a human rights issue