MANILA, Philippines – A joint committee in the House of Representatives adopted a bill on Monday, August 6, seeking to provide persons at least 15 years old free training to equip them better for in-demand jobs. 

Under the still unnumbered bill, to be known as “Tulong Trabaho Act,” select training programs of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) will be available to them to address the mismatch between the skills possessed by applicants and requirements of employers. 

A fund will be established for the Philippine Labor Force Competency Competitiveness Program. 

The House committees on higher and technical education and labor and employment adopted the bill Monday as substitute to House bills 5729, 5889, 5923, 6287. It’s counterpart in the Senate, Senate Bill 1431, was approved on 3rd and final reading as early as May 2017. 

Under the House bill, Tesda’s “Tulong Trabaho fund” which cover training expenses, laboratory fees, and transportation fees. The proposed measure provides for the fund to be included in the General Appropriations Act to ensure its inclusion in Tesda’s annual budget.

The training programs may be school-based, center-based, community-based, or enterprise-based. These differ from Tesda programs currently covered by the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act.

The training programs will be formulated with input from industry experts and communities and will be based on:

• Labor market intelligence reports
• Data on employment opportunities to be provided by the Department on Labor and Employment
• Data on jobs and skills matching to be provided by Tesda
• Human resource development plans

The competitiveness program aims to meet the demand for a well-trained workforce by providing assistance to “qualified yet underprivileged citizens.” – Rappler.com