MANILA, Philippines — The labor department disclosed Wednesday that it will be using funding under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act to provide emergency employment for at least 25,000 workers in the Bicol region, which was hard hit by Super Typhoon Rolly.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in a media briefing that his agency will be dipping into the P4-billion funding allocated for the emergency employment program of workers displaced by the coronavirus pandemic.
This means that funding originally allocated under Bayanihan II would have to be shared between workers who were displaced by the pandemic and workers affected by 'Rolly.' “While the program of the measure is to address COVID(-19), any emergency will also justify our giving extra or emergency work to our informal workers,” Bello said, partly in Filipino.
In a text message, Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado confirmed reallocating Bayanihan II funds the labor department to use funding provided under Bayanihan 2, although it remains unclear how much of the funds have remained untapped nearly 2 months after the Bayanihan II was passed.
Bello estimated that in the Bicol region alone, the emergency employment program in response to Rolly would cost the government P180 million to P280 million.
He said there would be at least 5,000 beneficiaries in each of the provinces of Catanduanes, Albay, Camarines Sur, Masbate, Camarines Norte.
The emergency employment program in response to Rolly will also be rolled out in Calabarzon and Mimaropa, he said.
The emergency employment program, formally known as Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD), gives employment to displaced workers for a period of 10 to 30 days, depending on the nature of work to be performed.
In the case of the TUPAD program in Rolly-hit areas, workers would be asked to join in on the cleanup efforts in exchange for financial aid.