The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said it will provide at least 200 thousand employment opportunities nationwide, through its “Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged Workers” (TUPAD) program, starting today, June 1.
Newly-appointed DOLE Secretary Francis Tolentino said in a radio interview that the department will officially deploy TUPAD workers to assist in the “Brigada Eskwela” of the Department of Education.
TUPAD beneficiaries will be assigned in schools in their respective areas to clean, repair classrooms, and ensure that all learning facilities will be ready for the opening of classes this upcoming school year.
Tolentino said that DOLE regional directors and their assistants will be assigned to supervise the agency’s program.
The TUPAD program was launched in 2009 under the DOLE Integrated Livelihood and Emergency Employment Program, which provides temporary wage employment to marginalized, underemployed, or displaced workers, typically for a period of 10 to 30 days.
Beneficiaries are usually assigned to perform community work, such as street sweeping, de-clogging canals, tree planting, or repairing public facilities, and are paid the regional minimum wage, the DOLE said.
Meanwhile, Tolentino said they are coordinating with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority to provide start-up financial support to those graduates of technical, vocational courses through the TUPAD program. ||
