Republic of the Philippines

PROVINCE OF TARLAC

PROVINCIAL HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OFFICE

PROPOSAL:
THE CREATION AND INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE PROVINCIAL TRAINING &
EMPLOYMENT SERVICES OFFICE (PTESO), INTEGRATING THE EXISTING TRAINING
NETWORK & PLACEMENT PROGRAM (TPNP) AND THE PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT SERVICES
OFFICE (PESO).
INTRODUCTION:
Unemployment and underemployment are the twin problems requiring societys immediate and
undivided attention if it seriously wishes to improve the socio-economic status of the majority of
its citizenry. The perennial shortage of employment opportunities continues to be a nagging
concern. It spares no one and besets the current crop of new entrants to the labor force, those
who are already in the labor force, and those who will eventually enter it in coming years. It
continues to spark much discussion on corrective measures that are neededin terms of policies
and programsto ameliorate the adverse effects to individuals of the scarcity of work including
its ramifications to the economy.
The lack or absence of work triggers social ills and traps the jobless into situations of poverty,
family strife, less than adequate feelings of self-worth, and sometimes, even crime. This less than
optimal situation represents wasted opportunity in the form of people willing and able to work
but who are not able to find work or are working at less than their full potential.
Given the importance of employment to decrease poverty rate, job-creation should occupy a
central place in province-wide poverty reduction strategies. Many employment strategies are
often related to agricultural and rural development and include using labor-intensive agricultural
technologies; developing small and medium-size enterprises, and promoting micro projects in
rural areas. Aside from these, strategies such as promoting self-employment, non-farm
employment in rural areas, targeted employment interventions, microfinance and credit are
considered as means of employment generation, skill formation and training.
On the other hand, Skills development is a primary means of enabling Tarlaqueos to make a
smooth transition to work. A comprehensive approach is required to integrate Tarlaqueos in the
labor market, including relevant and quality skills training, labor market information, career
guidance and employment services, recognition of prior learning, incorporating entrepreneurship
with training and effective skills forecasting. Improved basic education and core work skills are

Republic of the Philippines

PROVINCE OF TARLAC

PROVINCIAL HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OFFICE

particularly important to enable Tarlaqueos to engage in lifelong learning as well as transition to
the labor market.
Skills development enhances both peoples capacities to work and their opportunities at work,
offering more scope for creativity and satisfaction at work.
The future prosperity of any country depends ultimately on the number of persons in employment
and how productive they are at work. A rich literature exists on the links between education, skills,
productivity and economic growth.
Available evidence firmly establishes that a combination of good education with training that is
of good quality and is relevant to the labor market.

empowers people to develop their full capacities and to seize employment and social
opportunities;
raises productivity, both of workers and of enterprises;
contributes to boosting future innovation and development;
encourages both domestic and foreign investment, and thus job growth, lowering
unemployment and underemployment;
leads to higher wages;
when broadly accessible, expands labor market opportunities and reduces social
inequalities.

Establishing solid bridges between vocational education, training and skills development, and the
world of work makes it more likely that workers will learn the right skills, namely those required
by the evolving demands of labor markets, enterprises and workplaces in different economic
sectors and industries.
By using up-do-date information, those working in education and training can assess the match
between the skills they are teaching and those in demand in the workplace.
Employment and Skills development are vital to the one of 4-pillar agenda of Tarlac Provincial
Governor Victor A. Yap which is Trabaho Muna (Employment First).

Republic of the Philippines

PROVINCE OF TARLAC

PROVINCIAL HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OFFICE

RATIONALE:
Section 3 of Article XIII of the 1987 Philippine Constitutions provides the State shall afford full
protection to labor, local and overseas, organized and unorganized, and promote full employment
and equality of employment opportunities for all. Moreover, Section 2 of R.A. 8759 otherwise
known as Public Employment Service Office Act of 1999 declares that the State shall provide full
employment and equality of employment opportunities for all, and for this purpose, to strengthen
and expand the existing employment facilitation service machinery of the government particularly
at the local levels.
To carry out the above-declared Act, there shall be established in all capital towns of provinces,
key cities, and other strategic areas a Public Employment Service Office (PESO) which shall be
community-based and maintained largely by local government units (LGUs) and a number of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or community-based organizations (CBOs) and state
universities and colleges (SUCs). The PESO shall be linked to the regional offices of the
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) for coordination and technical supervision, and to
the DOLE central office, to constitute the national employment service network.
The establishment Public Employment Service Office (PESO) in the Province of Tarlac have always
played an important facilitation role in linking labor demand and supply more effectively, thereby
reducing unemployment. While earlier, these services focused on workers informal employment
relations (the scope of such services would include support to jobseekers in attaining counseling
and placement services for formal sector employment), such services have increasingly been
acknowledged as a relevant multi-service agency, which can reach out to the working poor, outof-school youth and the informal economy, among others.
The existing Public Employment Service Office (PESO) in the Provincial government of Tarlac was
formerly the Public Affairs Office (PAO).
Aside from the existing PESO, in response to the growing demands for local employment and to
provide access to equal employment opportunities to the Tarlaqueos, the Training and
Placement Network Program (TPNP) was established by Gov. Victor A. Yap in 2007 to answer the
immoderate unemployment rate in Tarlac which helps, train, find and search job opportunities for
Tarlaqueos.
With the current set-up, there were several occurrences of overlapping of tasks and job
duplication specifically on Placement. There is an instance that the TPNP focused on Local

Republic of the Philippines

PROVINCE OF TARLAC

PROVINCIAL HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OFFICE

employment while the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) focused on overseas employment
until recently the Department of Labor and Employment Region III Office stipulated the TPNP to
cease its placement activities due to legalities that they are authorized or mandated to conduct
such activity.
Hence, in order to strengthen efforts and maximize capabilities to efficiently reduce
unemployment and underemployment in the province of Tarlac, there is a need to create the
PROVINCIAL TRAINING & EMPLOYMENT SERVICES OFFICES (PTESO) thru the integration of the
existing Training and Placement Network Program (TPNP) and the Public Employment Service
Office (PESO) for the purpose of intensification, continuity (and legacy) of employment
generation, and skills training & development program of the Provincial government. Hence,
producing highly competitive Tarlaqueo workforce having the Right Skills for the Right Job
that would fit in the Labor Market both domestic and foreign. Furthermore, such creation of the
said office will serve as One Stop Shop for Tarlaqueos pertaining accessibility to training and
employment opportunities.
There is also a need to institutionalize the PROVINCIAL TRAINING & EMPLOYMENT SERVICES
OFFICES (PTESO) in reference to the newly signed Republic Act No. 10691, the Amendatory
Law of Peso Act of 1999. Such Institutionalization will provide the required formal status of
the same, including the following benefits:

Appropriate legal status provided by local lawmaking body

Adequate staffing and funding for operations (annual budget appropriations)
Proper training for its personnel (DOLE will invest more training resources)
Effective systems, procedures, and linkages with markets and private employment service
providers (interest in cooperation and investing time and even resources)
Set up a network of relevant stakeholders
Lab our market information (LMI) is set in place which helps planning and monitoring in
the area of employment and self-employment.

Most if not all of the well-performing PESOs on record have legal status either through a
Sangguniang resolution or ordinance which was instrumental in their creation. Consequently, they
are able to reap these benefits:

Republic of the Philippines

PROVINCE OF TARLAC

PROVINCIAL HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OFFICE

They receive funds for their operations.

They can afford to develop long-term vision, make long-term investments on human
resources, and network with NGOs, the private sector, and other LGUs; the end result is
that they perform better.

As Institutionalized which emphasized quality and sustainability of their operations are seen as
reliable partners for employment and training services by the political leadership and local
government.
Lastly, by institutionalizing the same, the Provincial government of Tarlac is making a commitment
in prioritizing the employment needs of our citizenry.