There were 4,575 job applicants at the “Kalayaan Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabuhayan” job fair at the SM City Event Center in Bacolod City on Sunday, June 12, Mary Agnes Capigon, Department of Labor and Employment Negros Occidental Field Office (DOLE NOFO) head, said.
The initial report is 129 were hired on the spot, she added.
The huge turnout at the job fair is a clear manifestation that a lot of people need jobs, DOLE Regional Director Sixto Rodriguez Jr. said.
A lot of people lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, and several establishments closed, he said.
There were 6,182 jobs available during the job fair of which 4,993 were local and 1,189 overseas, Capigon said.
Rodriguez also assured that the DOLE will ensure employers’ compliance with the new wage order in Western Visayas that took effect June 5.
Labor inspectors will visit establishments to ensure compliance, he said.
“We encourage employers to voluntarily comply,” he said, stressing that they will be made to pay the wage increase from the day of its affectivity.
Complaints of noncompliance can be lodged at any DOLE office, he said.*