DOLE: Only qualified beneficiaries can benefit from TUPAD

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AHEAD of the campaign period for the May 2025 polls, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) yesterday assured the public that the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) program will only be used to help eligible individuals.

In a televised public briefing, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said only qualified individuals can avail of the emergency employment program of the DOLE for displaced workers.

“We want to make sure that all beneficiaries are indeed eligible or qualified beneficiaries in accordance with our guidelines,” said Laguesma.

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“We have amended our guidelines to make sure that every centavo for the program will be given to the most in need and qualified beneficiaries,” he added.

Laguesma issued the assurance amid concerns that public officials and politicians may use the TUPAD program to advance their political bids in the coming elections.

TUPAD is an emergency employment assistance program wherein displaced workers are hired by the government for a limited period of community work.

Worker-beneficiaries are paid with the prevailing minimum wage rate in their respective regions.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) earlier exempted nine social services programs of the DOLE, including TUPAD, from the election spending ban.

One of the conditions of the Comelec exemptions is that the DOLE programs “shall not, in any manner, influence the conduct” of the 2025 polls.

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