THIRTY-FIVE thousand workers in the Zamboanga Peninsula are projected by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to be temporarily displaced during the next three months due to the closure of the fishing season in the region.
In a televised public briefing, DOLE-Region 9 Director Roy Buenafe said 35,000 workers from the canning and fishing industry will become jobless beginning December 1.
“This will affect more or less 35,000 workers in the canning and fishing industry as well as other allied industries,” said Buenafe.
“Aside from the formal sector, the informal sector will also be affected if they belong to those related to the fishing and canning industry,” he added.
To alleviate the situations, Buenafe said they have activated their emergency employment assistance under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program.
“We want to at least help ease the burden of being jobless for three months by providing them one month’s worth of salary,” said Buenafe.
He said the displaced workers will engage in farming activities inside the economic zones in the region.
“Under the emergency employment, they will have a salary by working in the identified farms of the cooperatives,” said Buenafe.
The fishing season is closed in the Zamboanga Peninsula from December 1 until March 1 next year.
According to the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), the closed fishing season will enable fish to spawn and repopulate.
