(Photo from DOLE Region 9)
“Sa Bagong Pilipinas, ang pag-unlad at kasaganaan ay hatid sa bawat tahanan, sapagkat tiyak na may magandang trabahong naghihintay para sa bawat Pilipino,” President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. said in his X (formerly Twitter) account in February 2024.
Aligned with the President’s thrust of ensuring jobs for the country’s working population, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has been providing effective employment services, as one of the key functions of the department. This function is recognized in the Philippine Development Plan 2023-2028, according to Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma.
“Employment services are crucial in facilitating school-to-work transitions, eliminating barriers, and reducing costs in searching for and accessing employment opportunities,” Secretary Laguesma said.
One vital component of DOLE’s employment services is holding job fairs.
Secretary Laguesma said that in 2024, the DOLE held around 1,800 jobs fairs where around 65,000 job seekers – including several youths – were declared “hired on the spot (HOTS).”
During the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon forum on January 15, 2025, he said, “Actually, last year if my memory serves me right, there were some 1,800 jobs fairs conducted nationwide, with the help of Public Employment Service Offices (PESO) of every local government unit.”
“More than 400,000 participated in the said jobs fair and what is called hired-on-the-spot or those after the process, they have already reached some 65,000 people,” he added. He noted that among the major jobs offered were in retail service and manufacturing.
Promoting gainful employment
Secretary Laguesma underscored that DOLE regularly conducts job fairs as part of its employment facilitation programs. This is to fulfill its mission of “promoting gainful employment opportunities and human resources development” in alignment with President Marcos Jr.’s jobs program for the people.
DOLE Department Order No. 113 s. 2011 defines job fairs as “an employment service strategy that facilitates the meeting of job seekers and employers, local and overseas licensed recruitment agencies, and registered job contractors and sub-contractors in an activity featuring registration, interviews and placements organized by the Regional/Field Offices of the DOLE, PESOs [Public Employment Services Office] and Private Entities…”
The department has reported that close to 3,000 job fairs were conducted from July 2022 to May 2024, where 802,325 jobseekers registered and 124,004 were hired on the spot nationwide.
In addition, 4.8 million qualified applicants were placed in various employment opportunities during the same period, through the different Public Employment Service Offices (PESOs) nationwide. This is equivalent to a 98 percent placement rate among applicants.
DOLE also noted that over 1 million pre-employment government documents were issued free of charge from July 2022 to April 2024 to the beneficiaries of the First Time Jobseekers Assistance Act.
Labor Day job fairs
During the May 1, 2024 celebration of Labor Day with the theme: “Sa Bagong Pilipinas: Manggagawang Pilipino, Kabalikat at Kasama sa Pag-asenso,” DOLE led the nationwide conduct of job fairs in 97 sites across the country.
The event gathered together 2,839 employers who offered 235,246 local vacancies and 166 employers who offered 62,431 overseas employment opportunities. The vacant positions included those for service crew, cashier, sales associate, production operator, sales clerk, production crew, online teacher, and housekeeper.
In that event, 5,512 job seekers immediately found employment.
Secretary Laguesma said they conduct at least one Labor Day job fair per province, to bring employment opportunities much closer to Filipino workers in the provinces and regions. The job fairs also serve as one-stop-shops of government services, where 2,756 applicants availed of skills enhancement training; 3,106 availed of livelihood assistance; 821 availed of entrepreneurship opportunities; and 10,843 availed of services offered by the Social Security System, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and Pag-IBIG Fund.
Apart from those who were hired on the spot, 2.592 million job seekers were referred to local companies by the PESOs, largely maintained by local government units (LGUs) in coordination with the DOLE. Of this number, 2.423 million qualified applicants were placed in available jobs.
In the National Capital Region (NCR) alone, 1,598 applicants were hired on the spot during the Labor Day job fairs. The DOLE NCR likewise noted that 2,056 job seekers also tapped the services of the National Bureau of Investigation, the Social Security System, the Professional Regulation Commission, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, the Philippine Statistics Authority, and the Pag-IBIG Fund.
Also on the same day, 241 job seekers were hired on the spot in Central Visayas, particularly in Cebu City, Cebu; Trinidad, Bohol; and Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental.
According to DOLE-7, in Cebu City, 135 job seekers were hired on the spot among the 409 registered applicants, 81 in Trinidad out of 243 applicants, and 25 in Dumaguete City out of 131 registered applicants.
“Handog ng Pangulo” job fairs
In celebration of the birthday of President Marcos Jr. on September 13, 2024, the DOLE also conducted “Handog ng Pangulo: Serbisyong Sapat Para sa Lahat” job fairs in 69 sites across the country. These were organized by 16 DOLE regional offices.
The job fairs offered more than 67,000 vacancies from 915 employers. The highest number of job vacancies at 16,039 was offered in Central Visayas, followed by Calabarzon and Metro Manila with 9,529 and 7,772, respectively.
The top job vacancies were production operator/worker (5,597), customer service representative (1,420), cashier/bagger/sales clerk (977), laborer/carpenter/painter (502), and waiter/server/cook/service crew (433).
Among the top industries that participated in the Handog ng Pangulo nationwide job fair include manufacturing, business process outsourcing, retail and sales, construction, and financial and insurance activities.
In Metro Manila, four major job fairs were held at key locations—Barangay 54 in Pasay City, Robinsons Place Manila, Robinsons Galleria, and Novaliches, Quezon City. These events attracted 857 job seekers, 109 of whom were hired on the spot.
Successful job finders thank the DOLE
John Christopher Lopez, 31 years old, of Canaman, Camarines Sur, was hired on the spot as a rider at Smoothmoves Inc. during the Labor Day Job Fair held at Robinsons Place Naga, Naga City.
As posted by the DOLE Bicol on its Facebook account, Lopez shared, “First time ko po mag-attend sa arog kaining event na Labor Day at thankful ta ako ang inot na na hire on the spot kang Smoothmoves Inc. as a rider . Gustohon ko naman magka trabaho talaga ta almost 2 years ako na bakante, kaya salamat talaga at nagka igwang event na arog kaini (This is my first time to attend an event like this on Labor Day and I am thankful na I got hired on the spot by Smoothmoves Inc. as a rider. I really want to have work since I’ve been jobless for almost two years, that’s why I am thankful for an event like this.”)
Meanwhile, Dante Clapis Jr. was also hired on the spot as a Production Operator at Natcorp Career Growth and Manpower Services Inc. during the DOLE’s 90th Anniversary job fair held at SM City Legazpi in Legazpi City, Albay in December 2023.
He said, “Malaking pasasalamat ko sa DOLE Bicol dahil sa ibinigay nilang opportunity sa mga fresh graduates na katulad ko. Almost 4 months na rin akong naghahanap ng trabaho, kaya thankful talaga ako. Maraming salamat po. “
Another HOTS was 27-year-old Jomel Domingo who got employed as a branch personnel at a cargo forwarding company during a DOLE job fair in Metro Manila.
He said, “Very convenient po itong job fair para sa aming mga aplikante. Convenient iyong lugar at mabilis ang proseso ng pag-a-apply.”
Emerging markets for employment
Secretary Laguesma said that as DOLE remains steadfast in promoting gainful employment opportunities and human resource development to support the socio-economic agenda of President Marcos Jr.’s administration, they are also looking at emerging markets for employment.
“Karamihan ng emerging nakikita natin ay may kinalaman sa digital economy, information technology, may kinalaman din sa care economy, iyong healthcare sector, at syempre, may bahagi diyan iyong tinatawag din natin ngayon na green economy at saka blue economy,” he said.
“Ito iyong mga nakikita na maaaring makadagdag ng mga trabaho para sa ating mga manggagawa, the DOLE chief added.
On its toes, DOLE holds job fairs across the archipelago, trains people for work, and scouts around for new niches for the Filipino worker. Its scope of work is doable but comprehensive, and the Filipino worker is all the better for this.
