THE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) disbursed a total of P8.35 million to 1,670 affected workers from 89 establishments in Central Luzon under the department’s COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) 3.
Under the program, workers and individuals in the private sector affected by the declaration of Alert Level 3 are entitled to a one-time financial assistance of P5,000.
The recipients represent the first batch of beneficiaries as the regional office is currently reviewing applications from more than 700 establishments covering 15,000 employees.
“Restrictions on mobility as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic have adversely affected businesses and the employment of many of our people. We hope that the financial support provided by the department cushions the impact and gives our workers a fighting chance,” Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said.
“We have anticipated this number of applications and understand the needs of our fellow Filipinos during this time. This is why we did our best to expedite disbursement,” Regional Director Geraldine Panlilio, for his part, said.
Mariles Ruiz, a beneficiary and a representative of Martinet School in Tarlac, commended the ‘fast and easy’ processing of their application. “Honestly speaking, madali at mabilis ang process ngayon compared nung unang CAMP. Tuwang-tuwa sila sa nag-assist sa amin at na-approve ito agad,” Mariles exclaimed.
“We are so grateful for this opportunity. This is a great help for us and our families especially to our teachers,” she added.
A total of 711 beneficiaries are from Bulacan while 587 are from Pampanga, 180 from Zambales, 127 from Tarlac, 57 from Nueva Ecija and 8 from Bataan.
Bulacan was declared under Alert Level 3 effective January 4 while Pampanga, Bataan, and Zambales were placed under the same alert level on January 9. Tarlac and Nueva Ecija followed suit on January 14, two days earlier than the province of Aurora which was under Alert Level 3 by January 16.
All provinces in Central Luzon are now under the more lenient Alert Level 1, except for Nueva Ecija and Zambales.
