ILOILO City – Fifty-one jobseekers were hired on the spot during the Iloilo Provincial Government’s PESO Mega Job Fair, where more than 2,000 applicants competed for over 13,000 local and overseas job vacancies in what officials described as the province’s biggest employment fair this year.
The one-day job fair, held at the Iloilo Provincial Capitol on July 16, matched applicants with 74 local and 10 overseas employers offering opportunities across a wide range of industries, underscoring the province’s intensified efforts to boost employment and connect Ilonggos with immediate job opportunities.
Provincial Employment Service Office (PESO) manager Dr. Cynthia Dario said the 51 hired-on-the-spot (HOTS) applicants emerged from the thousands of jobseekers who participated in the activity organized by the Iloilo Provincial Government through the Office of the Provincial Public Employment Service Manager (OPPESM).
Based on data from Dario, more than 13,000 job vacancies were offered by participating employers from the accommodation and food service, construction, financial and insurance, human health and social work, information and communication, manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, business process outsourcing (BPO), and medical sectors.
Among the most sought-after local positions were assistant cook, kitchen helper, marketing assistant, waiter, warehouse clerk, accounting assistant, sales clerk, service crew, customer service representative, call center agent, delivery rider, bagger, dishwasher, cleaning in-charge, cashier, baker, cook, merchandiser, bellman, room attendant, houseman, and production helper.
The job fair also accommodated persons with disabilities (PWDs), senior citizens, and returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), expanding employment opportunities to various sectors of the workforce.
To provide convenient access to government services, the event featured 13 help desks from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), PhilHealth, Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Philippine National Police (PNP), Social Security System (SSS), and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).
The Office of the Provincial Human Resource Management Officer (OPHRMO) also provided recruitment and employment assistance.
A total of 166 participants also availed themselves of the Libreng Sakay program provided by the local government units of Badiangan, Balasan, Barotac Viejo, Estancia, Guimbal, Igbaras, Lambunao, Santa Barbara, Sara, Tigbauan, Zarraga, and Alimodian, helping jobseekers travel to and from the venue free of charge./PN
