POE TO PRIVATE SECTOR: HIRE K-12 GRADS

Sen. Grace Poe is urging the private sector to hire graduates of the K to 12 program to enable them to find "decent and fulfilling employment."

Poe has filed Senate Resolution No. 700 expressing the sense of the Senate to call upon the private sector to hire the first batch of senior high school (SHS) graduates and allow them to experience actual work.

"The successful implementation of the reforms under Republic Act No 10533 or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 requires the cooperation of the private sector, as they comprise a major part of the demand-side of the job market, and can thus allow or prevent K to 12 graduates from finding decent and fulfilling employment," said Poe in filing the resolution.

Concerns over job readiness of K to 12 graduates were recently raised by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), especially as regards the minimum number of training hours of SHS graduates.

PCCI had said that the current 80-hour or two-week long minimum requirement for the on-the-job training for SHS is not enough to equip them with all the skills they need to be ready to join the workforce.

The Department of Education (DepEd), in response to PCCI's concerns on SHS graduates' seeming lack of competence and qualification, had assured that K to 12 graduates are job-ready and equipped with values, knowledge and skills that communities, businesses and industries need. The DepEd said it was confident that its strong partnerships with different industry partners enable SHS graduates to strike a balance between theory and practice.

"One of the key selling points of the K to 12 Act when it was being deliberated in plenary by Congress was that graduates of the basic education system would be immediately ready for employment," said Poe.

Poe added that hiring the first batch of K to 12 graduates would ensure the successful implementation of the law.