A NEWS item appeared last week in a national daily that nearly 1,000 firms have laid off workers just on the first week of August 2020 due to the economic toll exacted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on their operations.
According to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), as of Aug. 9, 2020 a total of 944 establishments have dismissed some 16,134 workers as they downsized or closed their operations. This is an average of 1,792 workers being laid-off daily, higher than what was reported in June of 1,686 workers per day which was already a peak for the past six months. We are afraid that the worst is yet to come.
To date, 157,705 workers from 7,759 businesses have lost their jobs due to retrenchment or permanent closure of their workplace, according to DOLE.
To quote the report further, Metro Manila had the most number of displaced workers at 75,178 followed by Calabarzon at 32,421 and Central Luzon at 17,368. DOLE said that the administrative and support services sector are the most hit industry as it accounted for almost a quarter of all displaced workers or 36,578.
Nationwide, there are now a total of 83,135 businesses that have temporarily closed down affecting at least two million workers! No doubt Western Visayas also suffered from the pandemic, as we have reports that many establishments likewise retrenched their manpower.
What is the government doing to assist workers to reclaim their jobs?
We recommend that DOLE issue a labor circular to request employers to give priority to reinstating their workers instead of hiring new ones when the emergency is over.
On the overall economic situation, a statement issued by Finance secretary Carlos Dominguez III says that based on his meetings with industry leaders during the third week of July 2020, our economy is now beginning to recover. His report to the President said we already hit our lowest points in April and May, and we cannot go down further.
We have encouraging words from Secretary Dominguez that the Philippines’’ low inflation rate, ample liquidity in our economy and stable peso, which is currently one of the strongest currencies in Asia, have placed the country in good shape notwithstanding the pandemic.
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GEM OF THOUGHT
“Light at the end of the tunnel.” – If you see light at the end of the tunnel, this means that you see signs of hope for the future after a long period of difficulty.
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