DOLE to download initial P130M for 25K workers affected by lockdown curbs

FILE PHOTO Wearing plastic work boots and hairnets, staff Rodolfo Calumpiano and Zoren Bautista hold on to metal bars while using their combined weight to push down on a wood presser in Bandong’s. INQUIRER PHOTO/LYN RILLON

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is set to download an initial P130 million to its regional offices to help around 25,000 workers recover from the effects of the government’s imposition of Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila to curb the surge in COVID-19 cases.

DOLE Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay on Thursday said that they have allocated P1 billion for the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program which will provide each affected worker P5,000 cash assistance.

“’Yung P1 bilyon po na inilaan po natin for 2022, ito po ay sasapat sa mga 200,000 workers. Ngayon po, base po sa tala natin sa Establishment Report System po natin nung January 23, around 25,000 po ‘yung affected by reason of permanent closure and retrenchment at saka temporary closure,” she said during the Laging Handa briefing.

(The P1 billion that we allocated for 2022 will be enough for around 200,000. Based on our Establishment Report system on January 23, around 25,000 workers were affected by reasons of permanent closure and retrenchment and temporary closure.)

“So, ang ginawa po natin, magda-download lang po muna tayo ng sapat na pondo amounting to around P130 million para ma-accommodate po ‘yung initial na 25,000 affected na workers,” added Tutay.

(So, we will download sufficient funds amounting to around P130 million to accommodate the initial 25,000 affected workers.)

As of January 26, DOLE has received 22,000 applications, of which, over 5,000 were already approved.

Affected establishments may submit the following to apply for the cash assistance program:

1. Report of retrenchment, temporary closure, or permanent closure while under Alert Level 3 and higher; active account with DOLE Establishment Reporting System
2. Latest payroll (not earlier than November 2021) with a complete list of affected employees or:

• proof of payment of wages via logbook or ledger
• employment contract
• cash voucher or a petty cash voucher
• authority to debit account sent by the employer to the bank for the wage of employees
• Social Security System (SSS), Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth), and Philippine Home Development Fund (Pag-IBIG) alphalist or list of remittances
• list of employees with 13th month pay

Meanwhile, the following are the requirements for individual applicants:

• photo of applicant holding a valid government-issued identification (ID)
• notarized proof of unemployment dated during the period of Alert Level 3 or higher

EDV