QC OKs loans for new grads looking for work

The Quezon City Council has approved on third and final reading an ordinance that calls for new graduates and indigent job seekers to be advanced loans, which they can pay off once they find work.

The “Hanap na, Bayad Later (search now, pay later)” program provides a maximum cash loan of P2,000 to city residents who can use the money for their  pre-employment requirements.

According to the ordinance introduced by Councilor Donato Matias, an initial P1 million will be allocated for the program, which will focus on graduate placement as well as profiling of job opportunities to help Quezon City residents who are underprivileged or have recently graduated. The program forms part of the city’s poverty-alleviation efforts.

Under the measure, beneficiaries can use the loan for the processing of their pre-employment documents and requirements such as working permits, medical certificates, National Bureau of Investigation clearance and other important papers.

Indigent constituents and fresh graduates of Quezon City may avail of the program by registering with the local Public Employment Service Office, which will issue access cards.

A beneficiary who has landed a job can pay back the loan through the following options: salary deduction, tagging in their renewal of a mayor’s permit and on an instalment basis (from four months, six months to a year).