Marcos eyes monthly job fairs across PH

(UPDATE) PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday said the government was considering holding monthly job fairs across the country to further bring down the unemployment rate. In a speech during the 2025 Jobstreet Career Con at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City, Marcos said the government has enhanced its job facilitation initiatives, which included holding job fairs, providing quality vacancies to jobseekers, and bringing down the country's unemployment rate. "This is just a pilot project. If the turnout will be good, we plan to conduct this on a monthly basis," the president said. "It's not just here in Manila but in other areas as well so that others will no longer go to Manila. Let's go to other provinces where there are also applicants," he added. The president said the unemployment rate in the country has significantly dropped. However, he said the labor market has changed, noting that companies' requirements have evolved, highlighting the need for workers to reskill and upskill. "The number of unemployed Filipinos continues to decrease, and we're not yet done with that," Marcos said. The president said the government has improved its support for job applicants, ensuring they would not leave job fairs wondering whether they would be hired or not. He cited the reskilling programs offered by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, which help workers improve and gain additional skills to meet the qualifications sought by companies in various industries. Based on the Philippine Statistics Authority's report in January 2025, the unemployment rate dropped in November as holiday job opportunities outweighed disruptions from last year's storms. A nationwide survey conducted of 11,276 households showed there were 1.66 million individuals who were either unemployed or out of business in November, which was lower than the 1.97 million unemployed in October. Meanwhile, Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said there were more than 5,000 jobs available at the Career Con 2025. He said that over 18,000 job seekers registered for the two-day fair, which was the largest career event in the country so far. This event would also help those seeking employment create resumes, especially for first-time job seekers, he said. Laguesma also expressed hope that the job fair would help those affected by the ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) to find new jobs. In September, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said an estimated 40,000 Filipino workers would be displaced by the POGO ban. Of the figures, the DOLE said it profiled a total of 27,790 Filipino POGO employees working in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Calabarzon and Central Visayas. Laguesma said he hoped the displaced worker would qualify for new jobs. Organized by online job portal, Jobstreet by SEEK, the event aims to bring together job seekers, industry experts and top companies. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, with more than 100 hiring companies spanning various industries. Some of the participating employers during the job fair included SM Retail, Acquire, Philip Morris, TeleTech, Techno Global Team, Flash Express, Cardinal Health, Accenture, Nestlé, Meralco, Petron, Metrobank, JPMorgan Chase and Federal Land, among others.