MANILA – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is set to hire on a short-term basis potentially thousands of individuals whose livelihoods have been disrupted by the recent oil spill off the coast of Oriental Mindoro.
In an interview on Thursday, DOLE Undersecretary Ciriaco Lagunzad Jr. said the “emergency employment” would allow affected families to generate income while the cleanup of the spilled industrial fuel is being undertaken.
Lagunzad explained that the hirees would perform a wide range of mostly manual jobs, and paid minimum wage for their temporary services.
He said some of the jobs to be offered would involve “clearing and recycling,” and workers would be paid weekly for their efforts.
“Many of them (displaced workers) are fishermen and because of the oil in their fishing grounds, they no longer have any product to sell. The government has to step in to help them, as well as workers from other sectors who have lost their means to earn,” Lagunzad said.
The labor official explained that it is not only fisherfolk who have found themselves displaced by the environmental disaster, many vendors and tourism sector workers also had their livelihoods upended.
DOLE figures indicate that about 27,000 workers have lost their jobs as a direct result of the oil spill.
Lagunzad said the DOLE has also set aside resources to ensure that those to be hired would receive insurance coverage, as well as be issued protective equipment to ensure their safety in whatever area they are fielded.
He, however, emphasized that none of the jobs to be offered under the emergency employment program would be connected to the oil spill cleanup efforts currently being undertaken.
“That (cleanup) is too risky, and we don’t want to expose them (displaced workers) to additional health hazards,” he said.
According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), at least 10 coastal towns in Oriental Mindoro have been affected by the oil spill – the towns of Bansud, Bongabong, Bulalacao, Calapan, Gloria, Magsaysay, Mansalay, Naujan, Pinamalayan, and Pola.
The spilled industrial fuel already reached the shores of Agutaya and Taytay in Palawan, Caluya town in Antique, and more recently, Tingloy town and Verde Island in Batangas. (PNA)
