Employers yesterday said government must provide incentives and subsidies to businesses that adopt advanced technologies and sustainability mechanisms as well as those which provide training programs for their workers to acquire relevant skills.
This is one of the five resolutions submitted to the government by the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) at the end of its 4th national conference in Manila Hotel yesterday.
“(Technology) has cost; and businesses have to invest on it but not all could afford that,” said Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr., president of ECOP.
Themed “Job Generation in a Technology-Driven Environment,” the conference also reiterated ECOP’s stand on productivity and financial capacity-based wage-setting to ensure sustainable job creation and business growth.
ECOP urged collaboration between government, academe, and education and training institutions in prioritizing developing life skills, technological skills, and soft skills required for employment particularly among the youth and underserved sectors of society.
ECOP also called on government and its social partners must develop national resilience programs, social protection mechanisms and transition strategies that will support both workers and employers from technological, climate, and geopolitical disruptions.
The group’s last resolution calls on government and social partners to continue to encourage bipartism, tripartism, and social dialogue to address workplace issues.
Ortiz-Luis said employers should now be embracing digital transformation and preparing the workplace for the future.
“As employers, it is our duty to prepare our employees for these changes. We must invest in continuous training and upskilling to ensure our workers are equipped to succeed in a technology-driven environment,” he said.
Ortiz-Luis cited studies which suggest that to retain the same job five years from now, an employee must train and retrain for 40 percent new skills.
ECOP has adopted artificial intelligence in its Help Desk to assist stakeholders in accessing critical and accurate information and in recruiting people in its goal to create 1 million jobs this year.
