By Lorie A. Cascaro
ARE job fairs becoming less attractive to job-seekers? This question was asked by observers upon learning that as of 1 p.m. yesterday, a measly 1,957 job-seekers applied for 24,301 supposed vacancies involved in the Kalayaan job fairs held the Abreeza Mall and NCCC Mall in Davao City where the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) 11.
As of that time, only 853 of the applicants qualified–497 for local employment , and 356 for overseas deployment.
The total registered job applicants interviewed were 675, with 318 for local, 180 for overseas, and 177 for local and overseas employment.
There were 126 individuals hired on the spot whose names were announced publicly during the jobs fair, with 74 for local and 52 for overseas employment.
The total applicants for final interview or “near hire” were 223, specifically 144 for local, and 79 for overseas employment.
Saying that the region’s labor office has been conducting the Kalayaan jobs fair for four years now, Allan R. Baban, officer in charge/chief technical support and services division, DOLE 11, said jobs fairs are only “stop gap” measures for the growing labor force of the country.
He said the demand in the local labor market is low as industries are limited in the country, adding that while there are more local companies than overseas, more overseas jobs than local jobs were solicited for the jobs fair.
In fact, of the 104 companies, 71 were local and 33 were overseas, but, out of the 24,311 solicited jobs, 5,136 were local jobs and 19,175 overseas.
Baban said the DOLE seeks to provide more than just the stop gap measures such as jobs fair, but the department is also looking forward to sustainable resolution to economic related problems.
Conducting jobs fairs is only to stabilize the current situation, he added, but, workers should be free from economic problems, as well as unemployment.
Citing the message of Labor Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz for the Independence Day, Baban said the overseas Filipino workers must be liberated from their condition of working abroad for the lack of employment here.
Thus, it remains a challenge for the government to have long term measures for workers to have sustainable placement through industry creation, industry development and foreign investments among others, he added.
Baban also noted that there will be no more jobs fairs conducted when all labor forces are being absorbed by local industries, and overseas employment is only but an option.
