Mall has now 3,013 workers

BAGUIO CITY – Some 3,013 workers were hired by the management of SM City Baguio over the past several years to help in the combined efforts of the government and the private sectors to provide decent employment opportunities to qualified members of the labor force.
Karren Nobres, SM City Baguio Public Relations Manager, said bulk of the mall’s work force came from the Baguio-La Trinnidad-Itogon-Sablan-Tuba-Tublay (BLISTT) area while some of them came from the neighboring provinces of Northern and Central Luzon.
“The mall’s employment in 2014, which was 3,013, was higher than its 2013 job data that was at 2,823 workers. In 2012, the mall’s job data was around 2,989 workers which was slightly higher than its 2013 employment data,” Nobres said.
“The continuous growth of the local tourism industry is a good indication of the bright prospects of business in the locality through the years. We are optimistic that we will continue to increase the number of workers with the expected increase in our tenants as the years pass,” she said.
SM City Baguio was able to maintain its high labor standards since it started operations in 2003 up to the present that resulted in the bestowing of numerous awards from various government agencies and prestigious private organizations.
Lately, SM City Baguio received two awards from no less than Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldos, one of which is the compliance of the mall to general labor standards while the other was the mall’s compliance to Occupational Health and Safety Standards.
Further, the 49 tenants of the mall also received separate citations from Secretary Baldos in relation to their compliance to general labor standards upholding the management’s commitment to uphold the international standards of labor in their workplaces.
The labor department has institutionalized the annual awards for employers strictly adhering to the stringent general labor standards and occupational, health and safety standards which is one of the priorities of the agency to ensure that the rights, privileges and benefits of the workers are protected from abuses and below standards of employment.
SM remains committed to uphold the international labor standards and imposes the same upon its tenants in order to provide the public safe dining and shopping.
SM City Baguio officials were elated that their contributions to the generation of more jobs in the locality and their contributions to the upliftment of labor standards are being given recognition by the local government and concerned government agencies.
It committed that it will continue to sustain providing decent employment to qualified applicants considering that doing business in the mall has been robust over the past several years.
Nobres cited the recent awards received by management in terms of compliance to general labor standards and occupational, health and safety standards will serve as an inspiration for management and its workers to continue innovating and creating avenues for improvement and moving on to greater heights to the utmost satisfaction of the mall customers.
She added the new feather on their cap will be a constant reminder for their employees to make sure that their customers are fully satisfied with the services they render to them among others. By Dexter A. See