DoLE aid program could benefit 700,000 more

THE labor department estimates that it can add 700,000 more beneficiaries to its
informal worker emergency employment program if given funding of P5 billion.

In a Laging Handa briefing Thursday, the Bureau of Workers with Special Concerns
(BWSC) said if such funds are allocated to the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating
Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program, it expects to aid 700,000 more
workers.

Those who avail of the program will be assigned 10 days of emergency employment at
their region’s daily minimum wage.

BWSC Director Karen Perida-Trayvilla said, “If, for example, the allocation for TUPAD is
P5 billion, our given work days will be 15 days. We increased this from 10 days. And
with P5 billion approximately, we will have more than 700,000 beneficiaries to benefit
the TUPAD program.”

The BWSC is a unit of the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE), which has
been granted funding of P13 billion under the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act
(Bayanihan II). According to Ms. Perida-Trayvilla, the BWSC can also hire program
coordinators to better oversee the TUPAD program thanks to the new funding.

The TUPAD program benefited 604,901 informal workers affected by the coronavirus
disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis. — Gillian M. Cortez