Over 9,000 jobseekers flock to tourism job fair

CEBU, Philippines —  Over 9,000 jobseekers took advantage of the 8,310 employment opportunities offered in the three-day initial leg of the “Trabaho, Turismo, Asenso!” Philippine Tourism Job Fair simultaneously held in the cities of Cebu, Pasay, and Davao.

According to the Department of Labor and Employment, of the 9,000 jobseekers, 407 applicants were assured of immediate employment, while 8,376 others were considered as near-hires.

In DOLE, there were 2,114 vacancies that were offered by 44 participating employers.

DOLE said of the 4,000 applicants who visited the job fair site, 332 were immediately hired, while 182 others were considered near-hires.

DOLE has emphasized the need to bridge jobseekers with the human resource requirements of the recovering tourism industry, as the reason why the said job fair was conducted last September 23 to 24, 2022 adding that these series of job fairs will conclude in May 2023.

Overall, 157 employers joined the simultaneous job fair with a total of 8,310 jobs available.

The labor department added that for the Luzon leg there were 71 participating employers offering 3,620 job vacancies wherein 3,000 applicants flocked to the venue, wherein 45 were hired on the spot while 7,752 others were considered as near-hires or those who may be hired or placed depending on the outcome of their interview and compliance with the pre-employment requirements of the hiring company.

In Davao City, a total of 2,576 vacancies were offered by 42 employers wherein 1,000 job applicants flocked to the venue, and 30 jobseekers were hired-on-the-spot and 442 others were considered as near-hires.

A total of 530 applicants were also referred to the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority for further skills training. -  GMR (FREEMAN)