THE DEPARTMENT of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said on Thursday that it is looking to the private sector to upskill job seekers.
“It’s important that we see the private sector’s role in ensuring that we have interventions for our workforce, especially for upskilling and reskilling initiatives,” Labor Assistant Secretary Patrick P. Patriwirawan, Jr. told reporters on the sidelines of the National Skills Summit 2025.
He added that current job seekers lack the soft skills as well as communication, teamwork, and time management skills needed to effectively navigate the workplace.
Yu Ming Chin, executive director of Viventis Search Asia, said that the private sector must invest in the skills of its hires.
“You work in a company and the company has to manage the training,” he told reporters. “If we become too dependent on the government their abilities could be lacking.”
He cited the need for analytical skills in the workplace, to improve problem-solving capacity.
Mr. Patriwirawan added: “Hard skills are also something that the DoLE is monitoring because (of the demand for) hard to fill technical skills.”
“This is an important aspect of the labor market. If they are not readily available, it is important that we have interventions and skills training ready,” he said.
The government currently conducts skill and development training through the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.
“We have an ongoing collaboration with DepEd. We have upcoming job fairs with the senior high school (graduates) to ensure that our K-12 graduates are employable,” he added.
The K-12 (Kindergarten to Grade 12) program added two more years to basic education with the intent of making graduates employable and globally competitive.
Education Secretary Juan Edgardo M. Angara said that DepEd (Department of Education) needs to adjust the curriculum of schools to match the needs of employers, especially in Senior High School programs.
“The tendency is the curriculum won’t match or won’t help a students get a job,” Mr. Angara told reporters.
He added that schools must also integrate digital literacy in the newer curricula so graduates are at home with artificial intelligence (AI).
“Digital literacy is a crucial part of the curriculum and digital literacy is not the only skill for AI. It is important that a student not only knows how to read and write. It is important that he understands what he reads and writes,” Mr. Angara said.
The DepEd is set to implement a new K-12 curriculum in the upcoming school year, featuring the reduction of educational tracks for senior high school to two — academic and technical-professional.
It also cut the number of core subjects to five from 15. The five subjects are Effective Communications, Life Skills, General Mathematics, General Science, and the study of Philippine History and Society. — Adrian H. Halili
