MANILA – As the first batch of senior high school students began to graduate, Senator Grace Poe on Wednesday urged the private sector to hire graduates of the K-12 program who choose to immediately find work after graduation for them to find “decent and fulfilling employment”.
Poe said she has filed Senate Resolution No. 700, calling on the private sector to hire the first batch of senior high school (SHS) graduates and allow them to experience actual work.
IPoe said “the successful implementation of the reforms under Republic Act No. 10533 or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 requires the cooperation of the private sector, as they comprise a major part of the demand-side of the job market, and can thus allow or prevent K to 12 graduates from finding decent and fulfilling employment.”
She noted that one of the key selling points of the K to 12 Act when it was being deliberated in plenary by Congress was that graduates of the basic education system would be immediately ready for employment.
“Thus, hiring the first batch of K to 12 graduates would ensure the successful implementation of the law,” Poe said.
She made the call amid concerns raised in January by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry over the job readiness of K to 12 graduates, especially with regards to the minimum number of training hours of SHS graduates.
PCCI said the current 80-hour or two-week long minimum requirement for the on-the-job training for SHS is not enough to equip them with all the skills they need to be ready to join the workforce.
According to the Department of Education (DepEd), some 1.25 million Grade 12 students will finish senior high this year.
DepEd said Grade 12 graduates are job-ready because of the work immersion program included in their curriculum.
It said the K-12 program has equipped the students with the values, knowledge and skills that the industries need.
DepEd also expressed confidence that its strong partnership with different industry partners enable SHS graduates to strike a balance between theory and practice. (Jose Cielito Reganit/PNA)
