Philippines
ILO Assistant Director-General commends typhoon emergency employment work
By the end of the year, 20,000 workers and their families will have benefited from the Emergency Employment Programmes run by the Department of Labor and Employment, with the support of the International Labour Organization. The ILO’s most senior official in Asia Pacific visited Tacloban and Basey, two typhoon-hit areas to look at progress and needs on-the-ground.
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| Yoshiteru Uramoto, ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific visited typhoon-stricken communities in Tacloban |
Mr Yoshiteru Uramoto, ILO Assistant Director-General and Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, also talked to victims of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), some of whom are now taking part in emergency employment programmes organized by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). In Basey, Samar, he held consultations with the Secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment Rosalinda Baldoz, who was also visiting the emergency employment centre.
The Emergency Employment Programmes, which are run by DOLE and supported by the ILO, are expected to benefit about 20,000 workers and their families by the end of 2013. In addition to the minimum wage the programmes offer participants’ personal protective gear, occupational safety and health training, accident insurance, Philhealth coverage and skills training.
Speaking during his visit, Mr Uramoto said “I am amazed by the resilience of the Typhoon victims that I have spoken to. The community spirit is extraordinary. The people are so clearly focused on looking forward and rebuilding a better future through decent work.
“The ILO believes that employment should be part of disaster relief operations from day one and jobs restored should be an indicator of the success of an operation”.
“From what I have seen in Basey and Tacloban it is clear that restoring livelihoods is crucial to real recovery, getting them and their communities back on their feet. We must make sure that those who were victims of the Typhoon do not become victims a second time, by having to take work that exploits their desperation for income or exposes them to injury. These emergency employment programmes play a crucial role in that”.
Mr Uramoto was accompanied on his mission to Tacloban and Basey by the Director of the ILO Country Office for the Philippines, Mr Lawrence Jeff Johnson.
During his three-day visit to the Philippines Mr Uramoto also held talks with representatives of workers’ and employers’ organizations, international donors and UN officials.
For more information please contact:
Ms Minette Rimando
ILO Country Office for the Philippines - Manila
+63 2 580 9905 or 580 9900
Ms Sophy Fisher
ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific - Bangkok
Tel.: +66 8989 50912