Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said Thursday that around 1.5 million jobs were lost due to the number of industries that were forced to temporarily stop operations or limit capacity because of rising COVID-19 cases.
“Base sa talaan naman ng mga labor force, iyong mga sectors na sarado noong ECQ, mga 1.5 million estimate kami na na-displace, nawalan ng hanapbuhay,” Lopez said in a briefing on the impact of the enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila, Rizal, Laguna, Cavite, and Bulacan.
According to him, some half a million people returned to work after the slight relaxation of quarantine restrictions, adding that the rest would reclaim their jobs once the NCR Plus shifts to general community quarantine.
Metro Manila, together with the four provinces are currently under moderate enhanced community quarantine until April 30.
The guidelines provide that outdoor dine-in with 50% capacity is permitted as long as there are acrylic dividers and diners are seated diagonally, while dining inside restaurants is not allowed. Restaurants are also allowed to accommodate takeout orders.
Public transportation is limited to authorized persons outside of residence.
Metro Manila also set a unified curfew hour from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., with the exemption of authorized persons outside of residence.
