CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) regional office here on Thursday said it has issued more than 16,000 certificates for involuntary separation in Central Luzon.
The certificate is one of the requirements for unemployment insurance or involuntary separation benefit granted by the Social Security System (SSS), as per SSS Circular 2019-011.
DOLE-Region 3 (Central Luzon) director Ma. Zenaida Angara-Campita said the number ballooned in June when quarantine restrictions were eased.
“From averaging 200 to 300 issued requests a month, there were 4,934 individuals in June who requested and were issued with the required certificate for their SSS benefit application,” she said in a statement.
In June alone, 2,473 certificates were issued to overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) while 2,461 were provided to locals.
Campita reminded applicants that certifications will only be issued to eligible employees who are involuntarily separated from employment due to reasons stated in Section II (d) of SSS Circular 2019-011.
This includes economic downturn, calamities/disasters, and authorized causes such as redundancy, retrenchment, closure, or disease/illness of the employee whose continued employment is prohibited by law or is prejudicial to his or his co-employee's health.
She said a valid ID and a notice of termination from the employer or an affidavit of termination of employment are required to secure a DOLE-issued certificate of involuntary separation.
Once documents are evaluated and validated, she said the certificate will be issued the same day.
Due to quarantine restrictions and concerns for safety, she encouraged online submission of DOLE certification requests. (PNA)
