For City Hall employees who may be displaced: Mayor Garcia calls for job fair

CEBU, Philippines — Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia is calling for a job fair to support employees who may be displaced in line with the looming transition to a new administration.

As Cebu City Hall is set to be led by a new administration, there is a growing possibility that some employees will be affected by the shift. Garcia said he looks forward to meeting Cebu City Mayor-elect Nestor Archival to discuss the transition and also reassess the performance of some employees to explore the possibility of retaining them.

According to Garcia, Cebu City Hall is currently staffed by efficient and skilled employees. He added that most of them also have experience to back their respective credentials. He stressed that it would be difficult to hire new employees and start from scratch.

In line with this, Garcia appealed to the new administration to retain the current employees to avoid hampering the city’s operations.

Yesterday, Garcia announced that during his meeting with the executive department heads he instructed the Department of Manpower Placement and Development to hold a job fair before his term ends.

“Para sa atong mga empleyado nga ma-displaced,” said Garcia.

He added that the job fair is intended for job-order and casual employees of Cebu City whose employment is project-based and contractual. Garcia also directed that the job fair be conducted “thoroughly and properly”, meaning the information should be properly disseminated among the employees.

“Kay para they will have something to lean on… in case di sila ma-renew,” said Garcia.

Garcia added that he already instructed that available jobs must match the skills and credentials of current employees to ensure appropriate employment opportunities.

In previous interviews, Archival admitted that despite his upcoming assumption of office, there are no plans yet regarding employee reassignments within City Hall.

In the meantime, he said they will maintain the status quo.

However, he said these matters are part of the agenda that needs to be discussed with the transition team, hence the need to meet with the current mayor. He also mentioned that he will meet with the Human Resource Development Office (HRDO) chief to review data on each employee. Archival also noted that he will check whether there are sufficient funds to maintain the current number of employees.

In a previous interview, HRDO head Henry Tomalabcad said that most of the casual employees’ contracts will end on June 30, coinciding with the incoming administration’s assumption of office.

In the days leading up to his official assumption of office, Archival said he will be more visible at City Hall to oversee the transition. He said this is necessary so he can gather all possible inputs for his incoming administration. — (FREEMAN)