Manila – Researchers from the Institute for Labor Studies presented the results of the 8th DOLE Research Conference study which zeroed in on the reexamination and responsiveness of the Department of Labor and Employment’s interventions for displaced workers, last February 7, 2020 at the Local Governance Learning Center, in Intramuros, Manila.

The research titled, “Leaving No Worker Behind: Evidence from a Participatory Assessment of DOLE Interventions for Displaced Workers,” was co-authored by ILS’ Workers Welfare Research Division (WWRD) Chief Maria Isabel D. Artajo, WWRD Senior Labor and Employment Officer (LEO) Malorie Joy O. Mones, and Advocacy and Publications Division Senior LEO Bernard Paul M. Mangulabnan.

Present during the proceedings were DOLE OIC-Undersecretary Benjo Santos M. Benavidez, OIC-Assistant Secretary and concurrent Director of Bureau of Labor Employment Dominique R. Tutay, Bureau of Workers with Special Concerns Director Karen Trayvilla, and Financial and Management Service (FMS) Director Warren M. Miclat.

Using the cases of the temporary closure of Boracay Island, landfall of Typhoon Ompong, and Hanjin financial rehabilitation, the paper analyzed the relevance of the DOLE interventions for displaced workers. Drawing on pertinent administrative data and results of the qualitative interviews with stakeholders, the research assessed the DOLE responses against decent work outcomes and identified strategic recommendations for policy improvement. One of the study’s key findings noted that income support mechanisms were generally appreciated by intended beneficiaries but have been found to be lacking in terms of timeliness and sufficiency.

Another key research recommendation involves revisiting existing processes governing the formulation of pertinent DOLE guidelines and explore the possibility of allowing regional offices to come up with specific guidelines that will integrate necessary elements for more context-specific responses to worker displacement.

The paper and its results were positively received by the DOLE senior officials as they collectively agreed to study practical steps to immediately convene a DOLE inter-agency committee for workers' displacement, and for the Institute to assist in the development of DOLE manual for quick response teams in cases of workers' displacement.