The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) granted PHP22.8 million in labor, education and social protection assistance for beneficiaries in Negros Occidental, including Bacolod City, on Tuesday, August 4.
Secretary Francis Tolentino led the ceremonial turnover of PHP21.83-million aid under the agency’s Integrated Livelihood and Emergency Employment Program for the TUPAD or Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers to proponent Ilog Kinderhome Foundation Inc. at L’ Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City.
Beneficiaries include 2,650 disadvantaged workers in various cities and municipalities in Negros Occidental.
Tolentino also released PHP1.02 million in wages to 200 student-beneficiaries under the Special Program for Employment of Students in partnership with Bacolod City, and PHP34,000 in financial assistance to 34 sugar workers from Lopez Sugar Corp. and Victorias Milling Company affected by Typhoon Tino in November 2025.
Seven beneficiaries, who are qualified dependents of workers’ organizations, received scholarship grants under the Workers’ Organization Development Program-Isabelo Delos Reyes Scholarship.
The activity was also highlighted by the signing of the memorandum of agreement among the DOLE, Sugar Industry Foundation Inc. (SIFI) and the United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines Inc. (UNIFED) to expand educational opportunities and implement socio-economic programs aimed at improving the welfare of sugar workers and their families.
“We have to achieve the mission. The mission is for sugar workers to receive fair compensation for their work, for employers and sugar producers to earn a fair return on their investments and for the country to have a robust sugar industry,” Tolentino said in his message.
Tolentino said the long-term goal is to build a stronger sugar industry where workers receive fair compensation, businesses remain competitive and labor and management work together in an atmosphere of industrial peace.
“Let it [agreement] be proof that our sugar industry can be both competitive in the world market and compassionate to its own workforce,” he added.
Tolentino also attended the meeting with the DOLE’s Regional Coordinating Committee and partner agencies to discuss stronger interagency collaboration in promoting decent work, expanding employment opportunities and improving labor governance across the Negros Island Region (NIR).
This is Tolentino’s second visit to the newly established administrative region after his engagement in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental in July, where he turned over PHP174.6 million worth of livelihood and employment assistance to more than 20,000 workers, farmers, and disadvantaged individuals.
“NIR should not just be a line thrown on a map, dividing Negros from the rest of the regions and other provinces. NIR and DOLE-NIR should represent a promise, a promise to all Negrenses, including those living in Siquijor. Through DOLE-NIR, the workers here can have better opportunities and a better life,” he said.*PNA
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