Iloilo City has partnered with the online job portal JobStreet Philippines to bring more jobs to Ilonggos as they recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
A memorandum of agreement (MOA) was signed virtually on August 9, 2022 between the Iloilo City government headed by Mayor Jerry Treñas and Gabriel Felix Umadhay, manager of Public Employment Service Office (PESO), together with JobStreet Philippines Country Manager Philip Gioca to formalize the partnership.
According to Umadhay, the partnership, which is the first in the entire Western Visayas, aims to increase hiring activities in the metro and bring more jobs to the Ilonggos, particularly job opportunities that are suited with the educational background of applicants.
“This will increase our activity to hire more people and bring more jobs in Iloilo City. We are moving towards providing employment suited for the skills and educational background that they have,” he said in an interview on Tuesday.
Umadhay added that the underemployment rate in the city is high. Hence, the PESO hopes to address this by enhancing employment opportunities and abilities of Ilonggos to find jobs that are best suited to their background and skills.
“Taas ang underemployment sa Iloilo city. Through the partnership of this, gina-increase naton ang ability to look for more jobs and find a job that is really suited for their talent and their skills para indi taas ang turn out sang resignation,” he added.
Under the partnership, JobStreet Philippines will provide an online platform and free marketing to magnify employment services and opportunities and provide more access to Ilonggo job seekers.
“We have multifaceted companies here nga looking for specific skills that they have, we have specific jobs for that. We want to help Ilonggos find decent jobs and since JobStreet is nationwide we also want others to know about our employment opportunities here in Iloilo,” Umadhay said.
Aside from providing free marketing, PESO will also partner with JobStreet Philippines to develop career programs which will then be integrated into city schools.
He noted that while the business processing outsourcing (BPO) sector remains strong in the metro, there are also rising opportunities in the field of construction and hospital management.
Meanwhile, the mayor said the partnership will play a huge role in helping Ilonggos look for job opportunities while they recover from the pandemic.
“Ang ini syado ni dako. Ginasuportahan ta kay makabulig ini pangita employment para sa aton pumuluyo and especially pa gid subong nga syado gid ka importante nga mahapos magpangita trabaho kay nagarecover kita sa pandemic,” he said. (DG)
