Overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who were recently repatriated from the Middle East are welcome to participate in the nationwide job fairs on Labor Day, an official of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said Wednesday.

DOLE spokesperson Assistant Secretary Lennard Serrano invited the affected Filipino workers abroad to join the nationwide activities on Friday, where they can find alternative job opportunities here or abroad.

“There are also participating employers that offer jobs overseas. The job fair will offer both local and overseas employment opportunities,” he said in an interview.

“While they are here in the local atmosphere, what we can offer them are our local programs. One of these is local employment facilitation.”

As part of the 124th Labor Day celebration on May 1, around 165,000 employment opportunities will be available in 89 sites across the nation.

Meanwhile, the department is hoping to surpass last year’s number of job seekers hired on the spot (HOTS) in this year’s Labor Day celebration.

“We always want it to be higher. We hope the numbers will increase. Of course, we want to go beyond last year’s. That’s the idea,” said Serrano.

Last year, Labor Day job fairs achieved a nationwide HOTS placement rate of 15.07 percent, higher than the 11.10 percent recorded from the previous year. (PNA)