The North-South Commuter Railway (NSCR) and the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP) have generated over 31,000 jobs for Filipino workers as the Department of Transportation (DOTr) require global partners/contractors to prioritize hiring Filipino manpower in completing the said big-ticket transport projects.
With the NSCR and MMSP among the big transport infrastructure projects under the Build Better More Program of the administration, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed the DOTr to provide job opportunities to Filipinos.
There are still several Filipinos who remain unemployed or are looking for jobs that offer higher salary and benefits.
To help address this, the DOTr partners with foreign project contractors in hiring Filipino engineers, architects and employees in Project Management Offices (PMOs) and Consultant Companies, while contractors and subcontractors employ locals to work in construction sites.
The DOTr-foreign project contractor partnerships have resulted in 10,122 Filipinos working for MMSP, and about 21,031 Filipino workers employed at NSCR, to date.
Transportation Secretary Banoy Lopez emphasized that DOTr encourages foreign project contractors to prioritize hiring the locals, citing their competence, talent, and skills.
Secretary Lopez emphasized that projects like the NSCR and MMSP should not only prioritize Filipino workers but workers in the host communities.
Once operational, the 147-kilometer, 35-station NSCR will cut travel time from Clark, Pampanga to Calamba, Laguna and vice versa by two hours from the current 4-hour land travel and will be able to service around 800,000 passengers daily.
Meanwhile, the 33-kilometer, 17-station subway from Valenzuela City to Parañaque City and vice versa, ending at Bicutan Station in Taguig City with spur line at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 in Pasay City, will reduce travel time to just 45 minutes from the usual one hour and 38 minute-travel. Expected ridership is about 519,000 passengers daily once it becomes fully operational in 2032.
