DOLE Seeks Greener Workplaces
- Created on Thursday, 21 July 2011 00:00
- Written by Department of Labor and Employment
Banking on the country’s rich human resources and with the goal of promoting environmental sustainability, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) recently launched its newest advocacy dubbed, Green Our DOLE Program (GODP), with the pledge to empower the DOLE and its services, bureaus, and attached agencies to be ‘agents of green change’ in the country’s world of work.
Leading the launching of the GODP at the DOLE Ople Hall in Intramuros, Manila, Labor and Employment Secretary and Green Program Champion Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz said that through the GODP, the DOLE shall proactively uphold green and eco-friendly practices in its own workplace and among its own workforce for better delivery of programs and services to its stakeholders.
“As the ground-breaker of this nature-friendly project, the DOLE serves as a model agency for other public offices to implement policies and programs that promote cleanliness, safety, and sustainable environment at the workplace,” Baldoz said.
“It is imperative for DOLE officials and employees to set the lead, and be sufficiently equipped with knowledge, skills, and behavioral capacity to actively involve themselves in green workplace and productivity improvement programs,” the labor chief added.
The DOLE’s novel program aims to transform DOLE workplaces into cleaner, safer and carbon-free work environment and DOLE officials and employees into a happy and healthy workforce. The GODP also aims for the efficient use of resources and an economical system of waste reduction and management.
Also incorporated in the GODP are the implementation of green principles, strategies, and outcomes into DOLE Cluster programs, projects and services; delivery of quality DOLE programs and services to workers; and creation of a greenbelt community amongst the DOLE offices.
“I have directed all DOLE services, bureaus, regional offices, and attached agencies to immediately implement GODP in their respective offices and units and cascade this down to the grassroots level. Given the exigency of climate change, we cannot just simply sit down in our office and ignore the threats that could destroy our ecology, which will eventually affect even our own workplaces,” Baldoz stressed.
Emphasizing the importance of the green project, Baldoz said that the DOLE shall also launch other “greening” advocacies in the course of GODP implementation, including the 1st Green Jobs Conference in the Philippines slated on August 15-16 at the Occupational Safety and Health Center in Diliman, Quezon City, and the active collaboration with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in the National Greening Program as mandated by President Benigno Aquino III to ensure biodiversity and food security to address the problems on climate change and poverty reduction.
On her part, Labor Undersecretary for social protection Lourdes M. Trasmonte underscored that GODP is a management strategy to create awareness and proactive consciousness on the concepts, principles, and application of green productivity (GP) not only to the DOLE officials and employees, but also to the tripartite partners from labor and management towards improved workforce protection and productivity amongst all industries in the country.
“The DOLE wants our social partners in labor and business to have a sense of responsibility and ownership on the implementation of the GODP in their respective industries and workplaces. So we are taking the GODP as a shared responsibility,” Trasmonte said.
The Philippine Green Building Council supports the 1st Philippine Green Jobs Conference happening on August 15-16, 2011. To know more about the program and the event, visit: http://www.philgreenjobs.dole.gov.ph