GIP unlocks opportunities, provides inspiration

Young graduates who struggle to finish their studies are in a hurry to find a job and help their parents improve their living conditions.

However, there are factors that hinder their dreams, and it was through DOLE programs and services that they were able to continue and move on.

After completing her Bachelor of Science major in Accounting Technology degree, Mharjel Falleira immediately applied for work. Her goal was to help her widowed mother who struggles every day to make both ends meet from her meager income as a farmer.

Luckily, she was hired as an accounting staff in a travel agency in Iloilo City. But when COVID 19 pandemic hit, companies of the tourism industry suffered. They resorted to closure, retrenchment or downsizing. Many people working in the industry lost their jobs.

It was unfortunate that Mharjel was also retrenched. But hope came in the form of Government Internship Program under DOLE, she said.

A friend who was working in DOLE encouraged her to try her luck with the Government Internship Program. It was the turning point of her dream to become a public servant and provided her the inspiration to dream big.

“Being an intern, I had a glimpse of what a government employee’s job is. I realized that being a government employee, needs a lot of patience and a heart to be able to serve others,” she said.

Being new to public service could be a challenge, but the GIP helped Mharjel develop her skills and potentials to perform efficiently and effectively.

The development of her skills and her dedication as an intern at the Department of Labor and Employment-Iloilo Field Office, paved the way for her promotion as a TUPAD Coordinator before her internship agreement ends.

“We are looking at the capacity and performance of the interns,” according to DOLE-6 Regional Director Atty. Sixto T. Rodriguez, Jr. who strongly believes in meritocracy in hiring and promotion of personnel.

“We give emphasis to the values of an individual in providing services to the poor and the marginalized workers,” he added.

Mharjel’s income as TUPAD Coordinator now provides enough for her family’s needs. Her salary also helps for her sibling’s school fees and for their house’s renovation.

“It is significant that DOLE absorbs GIPs and promote them to a plantilla position or to a position with a higher compensation. As such, the objective of the program is achieved, and a life is changed,” said DOLE-IFO Head Melisa S. Navarra.

With a better income, Mharjel looks forward to take and pass the Certified Bookkeeper, Cost Accountant, Certified Accounting Technician, and Certified Public Accountant Licensure Examinations; to buy her own house and to travel around the world. “There are opportunities that will come to our life, and we have all the power to make them come true. We always have to work hard, for we have been blessed,” Mharjel said.