BAGUIO CITY – The city government approved the release of more than P1.6 million to pay the local government’s counterpart in the employment of some 300 qualified students under the Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES) this year.
Jose L. Atanacio, manager of the city’s Public Employment Services Office (PESO), said the amount represents the 60 percent of the compensation of the employed students for the duration of the semestral break.
Under the SPES law, the compensation to be given to the students employed under the program will be divided between the labor department which shoulders 40 percent of the total wages of the employed students and the remaining 60 percent will be shouldered by the concerned agency or local government and even the private establishments that committed to employ qualified students under the program.
However, the 40 percent counterpart of the labor department will be given in the form of education vouchers in the name of the school where the students are enrolled to partially settle their tuition and school fee obligations.
For this year, the city government was able to employ some 300 students under the SPES with 233 having already rendered their month-long services while the remaining 67 students are still rendering their services to the concerned offices of the local government up to the end of this month.
Atanacio said the timely release of the city’s counterpart to pay the wages of the students who rendered services to the city is to inform the parents of those who worked in the local government that their compensation will be available in the coming days.
It was learned the SPES was established in order to provide qualified students to be able to earn wages that could be used to partially pay their tuition and school fees to allow them to pursue their goal of achieving a descent education for them to become productive citizens of the country.
The city government has been a consistent employer of qualified students under the prescribed national program that seeks to provide deserving students with sources of income to allow them to be able to pursue a descent education for a brighter future.
By Dexter A. See
