New law to help jobseekers

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/RAFFY LERMA

PRESIDENT Aquino on Monday signed into law a bill to provide funds and regular staff to Public Employment Service Offices (Peso) in all provinces, cities, and towns in the country.

During the signing ceremony for Republic Act No. 10691, the Amendatory Law of Peso Act of 1999 at the Philippine International Convention Center, the President said the law would ensure that all Pesos in 75 provinces, 142 cities and 1,374 municipalities would have funds to perform their mandate of helping Filipinos find employment.

“This is not an ‘unfunded’ law like what we inherited when we took over. This law authorizes local governments to allocate funds to Pesos from their internal revenue allotment. Each Peso center will have a manager and labor and employment officer,” Mr. Aquino said.

With the modernization of Pesos, the President said local government units would have more resources to address unemployment in their areas through quicker linkage between applicants and matching jobs.

“A major problem for young people is the length of time involved in finding a job and the lack of information about opportunities in their localities. Similarly, employers who are hiring also need information about potential employees and their skills,” Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara, a sponsor of the bill, said.

Angara said the Peso Act would ensure that all provinces, cities and towns, including the poorest places in the country, would have fully-operational Pesos. Gil Cabacungan