ILOILO City – Ninety-one establishments in Western Visayas either retrenched employees or closed shop permanently due to operational and financial difficulties caused by the lockdown or community quarantine imposed to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
According to Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Region 6’s Niezel Anen Sabrido, these 91 establishments submitted termination reports but more could follow.
“Not all employers have complied yet with the required submission of termination report forms,” said Sabrido.
So far, said Sabrido, 681 workers were reported to DOLE-6 as having been adversely affected by the retrenchments or shutdowns.
The shutdowns mainly involved food services establishments or accommodation establishments, said Sabrido, due to the slowdown in the tourism industry caused by the COVID-19 pandemic that started in late December 2019 in China.
Those in the motor vehicle business (cars and motorcycles) were also hurt, said Sabrido, because of the restrictions imposed on transport.
The Philippine Statistic Authority, on the other hand, reported that the unemployment rate in the region rose to 13.7 percent as of April 2020 – nearly three times higher than the 4.8 percent unemployment rate in April 2019 and over twice than the 5.6 percent unemployment rate this January 2020./PN
