Schools urged to address job mismatch

BACOLOD CITY – Institutions of higher learning can help reduce the mismatch between prospective employees and job requirements.

Department of Labor and Employment office in Western Visayas Assistant Regional Director Salome Siaton said there are more than 200 jobs in the region that are hard to fill because of the lack of technical skills among applicants.

Siaton said the problem can be addressed if colleges and universities offer courses and technical schools provide training for hard-to-fill jobs.

The plan was part of their assessment and validation of the agency’s Project Jobs Fit this year, she said.

There are 16 priority and emerging industries in Western Visayas which are generating employment in the region this year, Siaton said during a press conference last Thursday.

The priority industries are Construction, ICT & ICT Services, Tourism, Hotels, Resorts and restaurants, Health and wellness, Agribusiness and Fisheries, Manufacturing, Power/ Renewable Energy, Education, Transport and Logistics, Real estate development, Automotive/land transportation, and Wholesale & Retail, while the emerging industries include Arts, Entertainment & Recreation, Banking & Finance and Cottage Industry.

The list was culled from a study under the Project Jobs Fit where Dole did environment scanning, focus group discussions and table research.

Project Jobs Fit started in 2010, and every two years, it is validated to identify the industries that generate more employment in the region, Siaton said.

The program is part of the DOLE 2020 Vision which aims to identify local and global industries that would drive employment growth, and the matching of skills requirements for the next 10 years, DOLE Regional Information Officer Amalia Judicpa said.

The emerging industries were identified as Key Employment Generators (KEG), and Siaton added that these things are important for the students and academe for them to identify what skills they need to acquire or introduce to lessen the incidents of job mismatch or underemployment.

Siaton said the 2020 vision of the labor agency was also aligned to address employment and allow people to rise above the poverty line.

Siaton said KEG industries lack qualified applicants.