More than 2,000 jobs up for grabs in DOT-DOLE fair

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

Up to 2,279 job vacancies are up for grabs in an upcoming job fair spearheaded by the Region 6 offices of the Department of Tourism (DOT-6) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE-6) to cap off the month of March.

“Trabaho Turismo Asenso” at Robinsons Jaro on March 30 to 31 will feature these vacancies offered by 40 employers.

The job openings are in tourism-related and non-tourism-related establishments and industries across Western Visayas including hotels, spas, food service industries, and business process outsourcing firms, among others.

DOT-6 Regional Director Crisanta Marlene Rodriguez said the vacancies indicate the continuous reopening of the tourism sector amid the pandemic.

“In most industries, tourism has the most job employment opportunities. From the hotels to restaurants, to spas and other activities, tricycle drivers benefit from tourism, our vendors benefit from tourism, and we benefit from tourism because our places become more known by simply having guests come over and introducing [the place] just by word of mouth,” Rodriguez said in a press conference on Tuesday.

“We also introduce the culture and heritage of Western Visayas, what we really are [and] who we really are. So, it’s really important not just in terms of job generation, not just in terms of economic activities, but also getting to know the culture and heritage of each region,” she added.

Rodriguez said the region had exceeded its tourism arrival targets with 4 million tourists visiting the region in 2022 against the 2.3-million target.

Most of the arrivals were domestic tourists, with Boracay as the top destination, while South Koreans accounted for the biggest bulk of foreign arrivals via the Kalibo International Airport.

Rodriguez declined to give the full data, as this rests with DOT Secretary Esperanza Christina Garcia-Frasco.

“When we talk of tourism, we not just talk of destination, but we also talk about the job employment that it generates, and we’re happy that we’re finally getting back somehow to normal in terms of tourism,” she said.

“We were not expecting very high tourist arrivals in 2022, and we’re also not expecting so much in 2023, because according to studies, we would pick up again in 2024, but as it seems just for the 1^st quarter of this year [2023], there have been many [tourists] doing revenge travel.”

Some national government entities including the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, Philippine National Police (PNP), Social Security System (SSS), and the Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF or Pag-IBIG), will also have booths at the job fair to assist jobseekers with their application necessities.

Philippine Red Cross (PRC) and Iloilo City Emergency Responders (ICER) personnel will also be present for possible health and emergency concerns that may arise.

This job fair is a national event, with other iterations to be held simultaneously in Regions 3 (Central Luzon) and 10 (Northern Mindanao) on the same dates.

It started in September 2022 at the National Capital Region and in Regions 7 (Central Visayas) and 11 (Davao Region), and is expected to end this May, in time for the DOT’s 50^th founding anniversary celebration and the national Labor Day holiday.