The Davao City Public Employment Services Office on Thursday held the culmination of the five-month work for persons with disabilities who were hired under the special employment program with fast food chains in the city.
PESO Manager Lilibeth Pantinople told reporters that the batch was made up of 21 individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing and were assigned to various branches of the Jollibee Food Group such as Greenwich, Burger King, and Jollibee.
It can be recalled that the City Government of Davao signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Jollibee Food Group for the special employment program for PWDs.
Pantinople said that she was thankful to the city’s partners for helping the program materialize.
“We are so thankful to our partners na nakig-MOA gyud sila kay mao gyud ni ang gusto ni Mayor na matagaan gyud og employment ang PWDS kay sila man gud ang lisud patrabahuon. During job fair lisud gyud kaayo namo sila i-market so thankful ta sa Davao kasi only in Mindanao ang ingon ani nga program (We are very thankful to our partners who entered into a MOA with us, because this is what the Mayor wants—to provide employment opportunities for PWDs, as they are often the hardest to place in jobs. During job fairs, we struggle to promote them, so we are grateful to Davao because this kind of program is only found in Mindanao),” she said.
One of the hired PWDs, Hiedy M. Cabahug, said through an interpreter she is very grateful for the experience.
“This is my first time working at Greenwich and I feel very inspired after I tried working, learning new things and gaining new experience. I would also like to thank the Government, PESO, Persons with Disabilities Affairs Office (PDAO), and managers of Greenwich for their support. They helped provide job opportunities for the deaf community. Thank you very much, ” Cabahug said.
The hiring of the first batch entailed job fair for PWDs conducted by PESO and partners, then further assessment as to their eligibility by the Davao City Social Welfare and Development Office.
During the five-months that they have worked, the PWDs received minimum wage for eight hours of work a day, and were provided uniforms, as well as meals.
Pantinople said that a special interview for the Batch 2 of PWDs special employment program is scheduled March 27 at Felcris Centrale located at Quimpo Blvd, Talomo, Davao City. On the same day, the recruitment for the third and fourth batches of special employment for seniors will also be held.
“Sa atoang PWDs ang atong gi-consider na kapansanan kay kadtong deaf and hard of hearing, sila ang atong possible na makatrabaho sa atong partner companies ang Jollibee Food Group naa ta’y special job fair for them karong March 27 sa Felcris Centrale magdala lang sila og resume and then mag-adto lang sila 8 o’clock in the morning para maapil sila sa ma-interview sa atong company partner (For our PWDs, the disabilities we are currently focusing on are those who are deaf or hard of hearing, as they are the ones most likely to be employed by our partner companies. The Jollibee Food Group will be holding a special job fair for them on March 27 at Felcris Centrale. Applicants just need to bring their résumé and arrive at 8 in the morning so they can be included in the interviews with our partner company),” she said.
Pantinople said that PESO is working to find more partners for the special employment program that will benefit more PWDs and seniors.
“Daghan pud mga companies nga gina consider ni nila nga programa so we hope and pray nga sa next year daghan na kaayo ta nga mga partners (Many companies are also considering adopting this program, so we hope and pray that by next year we will have many more partners),” she said.
Davao City Councilor Diosdado Mahipus Jr., in a statement, said that he is happy for the culmination of the first batch and extends gratitude to the fastfood chains that participated in the employment program.
“Right now, naay limitation sa PWDs, hopefully in the future ma expand nato especially nga naa gyuy hangyo si Mayor Baste nga atoa gyud ning i-institutionalize ang pag hire sa atoang PWD ug atoang senior citizen (Right now, there are limitations for PWDs. Hopefully, in the future, we can expand this, especially since Mayor Baste has strongly requested that we institutionalize the hiring of our PWDs and senior citizens),” Mahipus said. CIO Written by: K.Cañedo Edited by: A.Nawal
