DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 21 September) — Job seekers in Davao region are encouraged to join the two-day Tourism Job Fair where 2,541 vacancies will be up for grabs from September 22 to 23 at the Abreeza Mall, an official of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)-Davao said on Wednesday.
Paul Cruz, chief of technical services and support division of DOLE-Davao, said over Davao City Disaster Radio (DCDR 87.5) that the job fair would be participated by 35 companies, including hotels and other tourism-related establishments.
The two-day event dubbed “Trabaho, Turismo, Asenso” is a nationwide simultaneous event in Manila, Cebu, and Davao organized by the DOLE, Department of Tourism, and Public Employment Service Office to help workers find employment after being displaced by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, according to him.
He said all vacancies at the two-day job fair are for local employment, particularly within the region, as the newly-established Department of Migrant Workers will take charge of the recruitment for overseas employment.
He said job offerings include, among others, housekeepers, butlers, front office personnel, kitchen staff, customer service representatives, planning personnel, and warehouse helpers.
He said they are targeting that least 10 to 15 per cent of job applicants would be hired on the spot.
He said onsite pre-registration is available for applicants starting Wednesday. An online preregistration is also available via the Facebook pages of the regional offices of DOLE and DOT.
Ryan D. Roldan, regional employment focal person of DOLE-Davao, encouraged applicants to avail of the pre-registration to pre-select the jobs they wish to apply for skip long queues for walk-in applicants.
“We have invited a lot of hotels to join the fair because this job fair is all about tourism. The hotels and restaurants were severely affected by the pandemic,” he said.
He said the fair is intended to fill the job losses as a result of permanent and temporary closures due to the pandemic.
According to the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA)-Davao, employment rate in the region stood at 95% in the third quarter of 2021 compared with 92% reported for the same period in 2020.
It added that there were 11,871 workers who lost jobs in 2021 as a result of downsizing of the workforce by establishments, and permanent or temporary closures of businesses.
It added that there were 450 establishments with reduced workers, 85 permanently closed, and 31 temporarily closed last year. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)