Blas F. Ople Annual Job Fair

Yesterday was an ultra cool day.

We opened the Blas F. Ople Job Fair at a few minutes past ten in the morning. Good friends and journalism icons, Arnold Clavio and Ms. Jullie Yap Daza cut the purple ribbon together with POEA Director Nini Lanto. The crowd rushed in and our day began on an optimistic beat. We have 24 booths plus two public service ones. One lane is composed of licensed recruitment agencies, all of which are in good standing as per POEA records. There are booths occupied by companies in search of local workers – Promark, Inc had the longest line followed by CNEE and of course, the call center companies. Pizza Hut’s booth was overwhelmed with job applicants interested in working there as service crew and managers.

One of the stars of the fair was the Senate Electoral Tribunal which currently has openings for around 150 legislative staff assistants. Qualifications are not at all difficult: college grads not exceeding 45 years of age. They had to keep photocopying their forms as the demand for it was enormous. Tanduay Distillers had an attractive booth manned by a Tanduay model. It – and she – was so attractive that Beth Nieva, president of Empire International, had to ask how old the model was. Too young, it turned out, for a job in a 5-star hotel in Bahrain. Beth has been an active supporter of the Ople Job Fair and her insights into the mismatch between jobs and skills are right on the button. Her advice to undergrads – learn a marketable skill. For women, don’t go into household job contracts. Learn to be a nail technician (di lang manicurista ha?) or a beautician, as these are in demand in the Middle East and less vulnerable to traumatic encounters.

I had fun visiting the Level-Up Games, Inc. booth. My friends who dropped by are amazed at the versatility of jobs now open to young people. At Level-Up, they entertain job applicants who know and enjoy computer games especially Ragnarok. To play and be paid is any young jobseeker’s dream, I think.

For those interested in jobs in Canada, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and Department of Labor and Employment share a booth where you can ask your questions and leave your resumes. Be forewarned, that the process is not as easy as it sounds as the Canadian Embassy and Canadian employers continue to fine-tune the system in partnership with DOLE and accredited licensed agencies.

Jobless? About to graduate? Visit the Ople Job Fair at the Activity Center of Robinson’s Galleria, Ortigas Center. I also have a booth of my own there. Look for me and let’s chat a while. Today is our last day.
Have a happy, blessed Sunday!