Due to financial difficulties, many students are forced to apply for certain jobs to sustain their financial needs while going to school. The number of students working for summer jobs is continuously growing every year.
Summer job workers are expected to double their number as the Department of Education recently lowered the minimum age requirement for summer job applicants to 15 years old effective this year.
DepEd released Republic Act No. 9547 which expands and strengthens the coverage of R.A. No. 7323 or the Special Program For Employment of Students. It has amended certain provisions including the reduction of minimum age requirement for those students who wish to apply for a summer job.
Through R.A No. 9547, "poor but deserving students fifteen (15) years of age but not more than twenty-five (25) years old" can be considered employees of companies. This has been a major change as companies were formerly allowed to only accept applicants age 18 years old and above.
Aside from the age requirement, R.A 9547 also amended the following provisions on salary, application period and credentials of the applicants:
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"paying them salary or wage not lower than the minimum wage for private employers and the applicable hiring rate for the national and local government agencies"
"shall only be employed during summer and/or Christmas vacation"
"that students employed in acitivities related to their course may earn equivalent academic credit as may be determined by the appropriate government agencies"
The DepEd officials also pointed out their aim is to ensure that students are still learning while earning on their vacation periods.
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"We would like to make sure that they are doing great with their grades. We will look at their family income. Mayroon tayong mga hinahanap na talagang mas nangangailangan so napakagandang pagkakataon po sa ating mga mag-aaral na habang summer, hindi lamamng po sila kumikita ay nagkakaroon pa po ng pagkakataong matuto, " DepEd Spokesman Asec. Tomisito Umali said in a press conference.
ABs-CBN News' Jasmin Romero also reported that applicants may wish to apply for a job in fastfood chains, restaurants and even in local and national government agencies.
The DepEd secretary, Sec. Leonor Briones claimed that companies may also benefit from these amendments as they may choose their desired employees immediately. They may discover new talents, skills, and personalities who may then be hired as regular employees of their establishments.
"Namimili sila eh. Makakapili sila sino ang gusto nila. So they don't have to go through the years na wala-wala, ang tagal-tagal ng proseso. So you teach them the basic things, no necessarily those which are memorized only," Sec. Briones said.
Meanwhile, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) earlier announced that more than 200,000 jobs are available in the country for Senior High School students who aspire to graduate from their academic tracks.
Do you think lowering the minimum age requirement for summer job applicants is indeed helpful for the students? Let us know what you think of this in the comment section below.
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