Nlalaga.
Business
Mehday, November
Party-list group, DOLE ink
deal for senior citizens iobs
BY WEI{DELL VIGILIA
THE Ang Ptobinsyano party-Jist
has partnered v'ith tire Depart-
ment of Laborand Employment
(DOLE) to provide ]obs to senior
citizens who temain physically 1it
despite tleir adl'anced age.
The joint program, rvhich is part
of DOLE's Tulong Panghaoap-
buhay para sa Disadvantaged/
PARTY-LIST
I really drink that the government
should open more economic op
pottunities fot our senior citizens
and let them eajoy life even in their
twilight years," Ong said.
Ong said senior citDens who will be
hned by the PI.)P will be given menial
jobs tlot are not physically strenuous.
The salaries of the senior citizel
workets under this program shail
be based on dre minimum salary
in each region. In the National
Capital Region (IJCR) for example,
they wili get P537.00 per day.
Ong said another MOA rvill be
signed with UP and he is hopirtg
that tlis program wiil be repJ.icated
in other state universities and pub-
lic schools nationwide.
In PUP alone, there will be a
total of 60 senior citizens who will
be given work until D ec 31 , 2019 .
Ong is also pushing fot the insti-
tutionalization of this special work-
for pay program by 6ling House Bill
5362 or *re Senior Citizens Employ-
ment Oppoiturity Act to ensure dre
automatic emplo;'rnent allocation for
Filipinos aged 60 ,vears old and aborne.
Ong's bill seeks to amend section
5 of the Expanded Se.ior Citizens
Act of 2010 @epublic Act 9994)
Insght
Ll, 2otg
Displaced Workers oTTUPAD will
be lauoched dris morning at the
Polrtechnic Unir-etsity of the Phil-
ippines (PUP), t'hich has entered
into a Nletrotandum of Agreement
(lf OA) rvith Secretarv Silvestre
Bello III lor dre pilot implementa-
rion of the special employment
program for senior citizens.
Ang Ptobinsyano party list
Rep. Ronnie Ong said the r-arious
to ensure that senior citizens vrhose
annual income is belo,*' the povety
dteshold as determined by the Phil-
ippine Statistics Authoiity €SA) ate
given priority emploi.rnent duough
job matches provided by t}le DOI-E
and the National Commi$sion on
Senior Gtizens Q',ICSC).
HB 5362 also compels all gov-
ernment offices to invite, select
and hire qoalified seniot citizens
for positions, qualifications and
functiors initially determined by
DOLE, the NCSC and the Civil
Service Commission.
The pdr,ate sector is also encout-
aged to hire seniot citizens and
in tetutn, they shall be entided to
an additional tax deduction &om
their gross income equivalent to 70
percent of the total amouot paid as
wages to senior citizens subject to
compliance or *re Pertinent ptovi-
sions of the Intemal Revenue Code,
Labor Assistant Secretary Benjo
Befladdez said hiing senior citi-
zens and pelsons with disabilities
(PWDs) are not enough to comply
wirh the Anti-Age Discrirnination
in Emplol'ment la.l
Benavidez said itis also impera-
tive for employers in dre private
sector,to give their elderly and
PWD workers with the necessary
\ ffl,o,^lr pA7rc rl
discounts and other perlis no.r'
beiog eojoyed by Filipino senior
citizens are not enough sioce mau'
oi them still live in abjec polern'.
"They have discounts on food,
medicine, transportation and elen
enterainment but rviret\ the use oi
all these perks if our scnior citizens
do not have the moner_ to :pcndi
Ser PARTYJ-IST > Paqe F:
employment beneFts.
"Emplol.ers in the private sector
are reminded to provide their se-
niot citizens and differend_v-abled
workers u'ith equal wages and
bene6ts," Benavidez said.
As an example, the labor of6cial
noted that the four-hour p'ork
scheme of the employed seoior
citizens and PWDs should be ac-
cording to t}le minimum wage lavr
On the other hand, he said
PWDs and seniot citizens workhg
for more than eight hours should
be compensated with appropriate
overtime pay.
The DOLE issued the statement
after photos on ratious social media
sites, such as Facebook, of seoior
citizens and persons with disabilities
working in fast food chains and tes-
taurants in Meto Manila went vita-I.
Accotding to Benavidez, such
a development is a welcome one
as it goes in accordance with the
govelnment's advocacy of equal
opporturfties io employmenr.
"The Depattment is glad to
receive these rcports because they'
are being given the chance to have
income and participate in the
economic activiw of the country
despite their age or disability," said
Ben idez. - With Getatd. Naoal