THE chair of the House of Representatives’ labor and employment committee backed Pres. Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.’s idea of introducing short courses to improve the employability of K to 12 graduates.
“Any project that would give a leg up to our graduates so they can find jobs as soon as possible is welcome,” Rizal 4th District Rep. Fidel Nograles said.
The proposal comes after Pres. Marcos said that ten years after the K to 12 program’s implementation, it was unable to achieve its goal of improving the employability of graduates in the country.
Marcos also said he discussed the idea of providing mini-courses of three to six months, or even one-year courses for with incoming Education secretary Sonny Angara.
According to Nograles, the introduction of short courses could be coordinated with the private sector to ensure that these fulfill industry needs.
“Syempre, hindi naman tayo nago-operate sa isang vacuum. Kaya kailangan talaga magtulungan ang private sector at pamahalaan para masiguro na angkop ang mga short courses sa mga pangangailangan sa iba’t ibang industriya,” the lawmaker said.
Nograles also hailed as “good news” the results of the Philippine Business for Education’s (PBEd) 2024 Jobs Outlook Study, which showed that four in five employers or 86.6 percent of employers in in the Philippines are willing to hire K-12 graduates, while 13.4 percent of employers are “not keen on hiring them.”
It also revealed that 88 percent of micro, medium, and small enterprises (MSMEs) and 78 percent of large companies are prepared to hire K-12 graduates.
The PBEd also said that 42 percent of MSMEs and 63 percent of large companies have K-12 graduates as employees.
“The survey results mean that the door is not closed for K to 12 graduates to find jobs. Rather, it’s a matter of increasing the numbers, which I am optimistic we can achieve with the proper interventions,” said Nograles.
