Thursday, April 15, 2021

Up to 1.5 Million People Lost Their Jobs During the Two-Week ECQ

PHOTO BY Jerome Ascano

(SPOT.ph) More than a year after the first case of COVID-19 was reported in the country, Metro Manila and nearby provinces of Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, and Bulacan were once again placed under enhanced community quarantine on March 29. This was initially scheduled to last only until April 4, but was extended to another week amid a surge of cases in the capital. The two-week lockdown forced non-essential establishments to temporarily close. In a Laging Handa press briefing on Thursday, April 15, Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said that this caused a displacement of about 1.5 million workers.

"Base sa talaan naman ng mga labor force, iyong mga sectors na sarado noong [enhanced community quarantine (ECQ)], mga 1.5 million estimate kami na na-displace, nawalan ng hanapbuhay," he explained.

When the NCR+ bubble shifted to modified ECQ on April 12, only 500,000 were able to return to work. "Therefore, meron pa tayong mga one million na inaasahan nating makakabalik [ng trabaho], hopefully pag nag-GCQ tayo," Lopez added.

The two-week ECQ also resulted in a P180-billion loss in our economy. "Kung tayo'y may GDP na mga P18 trillion, ito po ay... sa one percent ay P180 billion, ang estimate na nawala sa ating ekonomiya," the secretary explained.

As of April 15, 4 p.m., the Department of Health recorded 11,429 new COVID-19 cases in the country. The total number of cases is now at 904,285.

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Source: Spot PH

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