Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) calls for P5,000 assistance per family, free transportation, paid quarantine leave, and price freeze during the implementation of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila.
“Ngayon pa nga lang, nauuna nang mawalan ng trabaho ang restaurant workers natin dahil sa pagbabawas ng capacity ng mga kainan. Saan po sila kukuha ng pangkain nila kung no-work no-pay ang iskema sa trabaho?” asked Jerome Adonis, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) secretary general.
The technical working group met again for the social amelioration program. The group consists of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Budget and Management, the Department of Labor and Employment or DOLE, and other agencies.
More than 11 million individuals were given SAP then, and they are also the target to be given now.
But the DOLE thinks separate assistance will be needed for the 400,000 workers directly affected by the ECQ.
So they are also asking for a separate P2 billion fund for P5,000 one-time cash assistance under the DOLE’s COVID Adjustment Measures Program.
Labor group asks P5K aid per family, free transpo during ECQ
Many labor groups believe it is time to develop a clear assistance program that can be used during lockdowns.
Among the things they are promoting are the P10,000 income guarantee, P100 daily wage subsidy, which must be accompanied by aggressive vaccinations, contact tracing, and free COVID-19 testing for workers.
On Monday night, President Rodrigo Duterte approved the budget needed for the cash aid or “ayuda” allotted for 80% of the population of the National Capital Region during the implementation of ECQ on August 6, Senator Christopher “Bong” Go said.
The cash aid will be P1,000 per individual or a maximum of P4,000 per household under the low-income group.
The cash aid will be given to at least 10.8 million people in Metro Manila, 80% of the 13-million population in NCR.
“Mahigit 13 milyon ang populasyon sa NCR at 80% nito o mahigit 10.8 milyong indibidwal ang mabibigyan natin ng ayuda ayon sa DBM, NEDA, at iba pang mga ahensya,” Go said.
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