Additional staffing needs of the government is seen to be partly addressed by the job fair held by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) at the SM City Baguio Wednesday.

Over 120 permanent and job order vacancies are up for grabs during the job fair held in line with the 124th Civil Service month celebration.

“This is part of the initiative to decrease the more than 200,000 job vacancies in different government offices nationwide,” Fernando Mendoza, CSC-Cordillera Administrative Region director, said in an interview on the sidelines of the event.

Mendoza said government placement remains a sought-after work by many due to security of tenure and competitive salary, especially with salary standardization.

“Kapag nagtrabaho ka sa gobyerno nakasisiguro kayo ng trabaho hanggang retirement unlike (sa) private companies na nalulugi. Dito, tuluy-tuloy (When you work in government you are assured a job until you retire unlike in private companies that go bankrupt. Here work continues),” he explained.

The event was also participated in by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Education, Bureau of Internal Revenue, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Social Security System, Pag-IBIG, Philhealth, Philippine Statistics Authority, Department of Labor and Employment, the provincial government of Benguet and the Baguio City local government.

Armed with a Civil Service eligibility, Charito Ansay, 25, of Baguio City, patiently waited for the start of the acceptance of the applications for a vacant position in any of the government offices joining the event.

Ansay finished commerce, and like her parents who are government workers, she also hopes to stay for good with the stability that the government work gives to the employees.

Stable livelihood

Atty. Nathaniel Lacambra, DOLE-CAR director, said he started in government service when he was 21 years old as a low-ranking employee of the Department of Agrarian Reform 42 years ago.

“It is a good decision for you to participate in this job fair because we all know that government service or a job in government is the most stable job that we could ever have,” he said, but pointed out that staying in government requires discipline and dedication. (PNA)