GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/07 June) — Around 10,000 additional local and overseas job opportunities will be opened to job seekers from various parts of Region 12 during the scheduled Kalayaan or Independence Day job fair on June 12 in nearby Koronadal City.
Ofelia Domingo, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)-Region 12 director, said Friday a total of 60 companies and recruitment or job placement agencies have so far signified to join the June 12 fair, which will mainly highlight the 115th Independence Day celebration in the region.
The job fair, which is being organized by DOLE-12, will be held at the Gaisano Grand Mall in Koronadal City, she said.
Domingo said 40 firms and job recruiters will be hiring for local jobs while the remaining 20 will be offering overseas work opportunities during the day-long fair.
She said among the local employers that are joining the event are shopping malls, banks, call centers and fishing companies based in various parts of the region.
Region 12, which is also known as the Soccsksargen Region, comprises the provinces of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, North Cotabato and the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong, Kidapawan and Cotabato.
Domingo urged job seekers in the entire region to take part in the upcoming event, which is among the biggest job fairs organized annually by DOLE-12.
She advised them to seek out all available job openings at the fair and be ready for possible on-the-spot or immediate hiring opportunity.
“For our job seekers, they should make sure that they come well-prepared and have brought along filled-out copies of their biodata or resume and other supporting documents like their certifications or credentials,” she said.
Aside from the job fair, Domingo said they will also hold a regional career advocacy congress, wherein officials of colleges and universities will sit down with local industry players to discuss the problems on skills and job mismatches in the region.
“Industry representatives will speak about their job requirements and the problems that they encounter during their hiring activities and with their workers,” she said.
The region’s network of career guidance counselors and executives of top local companies like RD Corporation, Dole Philippines, Inc. and shopping malls have signified to attend the congress, she said.
DOLE-12 earlier held a series of consultations with local industries and the academe to help address the mismatch between local manpower needs with the available skills training and courses offered by colleges, universities and technical-vocational schools in the area.
The initiative is part of the continuing implementation of the “Project Jobs Fit: The DoLE 2020 Vision.”
The project earlier took off through a nationwide study that identified local and global industries that would drive employment growth and determine the skills requirements that would be in demand until the year 2020.
In Region 12, the study noted that the agribusiness and aquamarine industries were expected to be the top job destinations for skilled workers in the area, as both were seen to dominate the labor market for the next 10 years.
Aside from the two industries, a surge in employment opportunities was also seen in the region’s oil palm, mining and tourism industries. (Allen V. Estabillo/MindaNews)
