THE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) will distribute an initial of P130 million to its regional offices to aid around 25,000 workers who were affected by the reimposition of stricter quarantine measures amid the increase of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases in the country.

DOLE Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay said Thursday, January 27, 2022, that the funds will be downloaded to their regional offices, particularly in areas under Alert Level 3 or higher, which includes Metro Manila.

The DOLE has allotted P1 billion for the Covid-19 Adjustment Measure Program intended for workers who lost their jobs either due to retrenchment or permanent or temporary closure of their companies due to the raising of the quarantine status in their areas.

Each worker may receive P5,000 cash assistance under the program.

Tutay said the allocated funds are for around 200,000 workers.

“So, ang ginawa po natin, magda-download lang po muna tayo ng sapat na pondo amounting to around P130 million para ma-accommodate po ‘yung initial na 25,000 affected na workers,” she added.

(What we will do is download around P130 million to accommodation the 25,000 affected workers.)

As of January 26, DOLE received 22,000 applications in which over 5,000 have already been approved.

The affected workers may visit the DOLE offices in their areas and apply for the program with the following requirements:

* Photo of applicant holding a valid government-issued identification (ID)

* Notarized proof of unemployment dated during the period of Alert Level 3 or higher

At present, areas under Alert Level 4 include Kalinga, Ifugao, Mountain Province and Northern Samar.

Metro Manila, along with over 60 provinces and highly-urbanized cities, including Baguio City, Pampanga, Bulacan, Bataan, Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, Iloilo City and Cebu City, are under Alert Level 3.

The alert status in these areas will remain until January 31. (SunStar Philippines)