105 OG No. 15, 2133 (April 13, 2009)
WHEREAS, the generation
of employment and livelihood opportunities for targeted income groups
is part of the country’s best preparation in thwarting the creeping
problems brought about the global economic
crisis;
WHEREAS, the Philippine
Gross National Product growth of six percent (6%) in 2008 despite the
recession in two-thirds of the world and the recent affirmation of the
positive outlook for the Philippines by the credit rating agency
Moody’s should not divert our attention from putting in place an
economic imperative -- the protection of the most vulnerable sectors of
society through the generation of jobs and livelihood
opportunities.
WHEREAS, the
cushion and lifeline provided by the emergency work programs
of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the early 1930’s
and President Diosdado Macapagal in the early 1960’s remain relevant
today as the world is grappling with the severest economic downturn in
decades.
NOW, THEREFORE I, GLORIA M.
ARROYO, President of the Philippines, by the powers vested in
me by law, do hereby order:
Section 1.
Emergency Employment. - All members of the Cabinet are hereby
instructed to draw up and prepare emergency work programs and doable
and fundable livelihood projects with the following economic classes as
beneficiaries : middle class, middle-low income class and the poorest
of the poor.
All government agencies shall allocate
one and a half percent (1.5%) of their respective Maintenance, Overhead
and Operating Expense budgets of temporary employment for one hundred
eighty thousand (180,000) employees six (6) months. The temporary
employees may be assigned to conduct surveys, census (as in the case of
the Department of Social Welfare and Development), price monitoring
(Department of Trade and Industry), office and field work and other
activities as previously identified in the Comprehensive Livelihood and
Emergency Employment Program (CLEEP). The temporary employment shall be
distributed as follows, with priority-given to displaced
workers:
- 50,000 workers of Region
IV-A and the Bicol provinces
- 20,000
workers of Cebu, Mactan Economic Zone, Leyte and
Samar
- 20,000 workers of Subic and Clark
Economic Zones, Pampanga, Tarlac, Bataan and
Zambales
- 5,000 workers in the CARAGA
Region
- Remainder to be distributed among
the other regions of the country, with priority for the ten (10)
poorest provinces and the one thousand (1,000) poorest
municipalities.
It is clarified that the
mandated distribution of temporary employment is far in excess of job
losses.
Section 2. Training with Income
Support (at half of minimum wage). - The Technical Education
and Skills Development Authority shall conduct training in in-demand
skills for workers in the following areas, with priority given to
displaced workers:
- 20,000 female
workers from Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon, Camarines
Provinces and Albay
- 5,000 workers from
Region III
- 5,000 workers from Region.
VII
- 5,000 workers from
CARAGA
- 50,000 overseas Filipino workers,
utilizing the acquired skills of experienced returning workers as
training instructors.
The income support
shall provide for the expenses of the workers for meals and
transportation.
Section 3.
Entrepreneurship. - The livelihood programs for the
government shall be consolidated into a one-stop shop by creating an
integrated Regional Livelihood Program Office at all regional centers
to support micro enterprises and self-employment, including livelihood
programs of the Department of Labor and Employment, the Department of
Trade and Industry, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of
Finance and the Government-Owned and -Controlled
Corporations.
Section. 4. Public
Works. - Identify labor-intensive public works projects in
poverty-stricken provinces to create volunteer jobs on honorarium or
allowance basis. The Department of Public Works and Highways should be
able to provide opportunities for 250,000 workers over a six-month
period.
Section 5. - Conditional Cash
Transfer. - The coverage of the Conditional Cash Transfer
shall be expanded to Regions such as CARAGA and Cordillera to cover
low/no income families and avoid the incidence of child labor,
especially in manual mining intensive
areas.
Section 6. - Effectively.
- This Executive Order shall take effect
immediately.
DONE in the City of
Manila on the 13
th of February, in the Year of
Our Lord Two Thousand and Nine.
(Sgd.) GLORIA M.
ARROYO
By the
President:
(Sgd.) EDUARDO R.
ERMITAExecutive
Secretary