CEBU CITY — The Department of Labor and Employment Regional Office in Central Visayas (DOLE-7) is now extending assistance to affected workers of Boracay in need of financial support while the island is closed for rehabilitation.
This was announced Friday by DOLE-7 Regional Director Alvin Villamor, who said that displaced workers in the island can avail of financial assistance through the department’s Boracay Emergency Employment Program (BEEP).
Boracay workers affected by the closure, who already returned to their respective hometowns in Central Visayas, are still qualified for the BEEP.
“We have designated a focal person to entertain the applications of affected. This, we purposely do to help expedite the distribution of financial assistance to beneficiaries,” said Villamor.
DOLE-7 has already assisted 30 applicants, mostly from the provinces of Bohol and Negros Oriental.
Villamor said the processed applications are immediately sent to the DOLE Regional Office in Western Visayas (DOLE-6) for approval.
He urged affected Boracay workers now residing in Central Visayas to come and avail of the BEEP at the DOLE-7 office or any of its field offices in Bohol, Negros Oriental, Siquijor, and Cebu Province.
Applicants are only required to submit their duly accomplished BEEP Adjustment Measures Program application form, photocopies of Certificate of Employment and any government-issued ID, and Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) account.
Under the BEEP, displaced and suspended workers will be given 50 percent of the prevailing PHP4,205.50 minimum wage in Western Visayas per month, which will be deposited monthly to the beneficiary’s LBP savings account for a maximum period of six months.
The BEEP is an inter-agency program spearheaded by the DOLE with the Departments of Social Welfare and Development, of Trade and Industry, of Tourism, of Agriculture, of Science and Technology, and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority as member agencies. (Luel Galarpe/PNA)
