Employers and technical and vocational institutions (TVIs) are encouraged to consider partnerships in programs implementing dual training systems as this can yield benefits for all—the company, the school, and the student, according to an industry expert.
Mary Ann Seriosa, a director at Panasonic Philippines, shared that since 2004, the manufacturer of electronic appliances has been implementing such a dual training program with a partner TVI under the supervision of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).
Rooted in Republic Act No. 7686 or the Dual Training System (DTS) Act of 1994, the DTS is a mode of training that combines theoretical and practical training and that takes place alternately in two venues—the school or training center and the company or workshop.
Seriosa, speaking at a recent TESDA forum on technical and vocational education and training or TVET, said implementing a DTS project provides a slew of advantages for the student-trainees. These include high-quality training, skills development, better work attitude and knowledge, and employability advantages. Trainees also learn to become self-reliant, adaptive and flexible earlier, gain allowances, acquire financial literacy, and help contribute to the financial needs of their families.
For the company, a DTS program can be a form of corporate social undertaking, become a source of easy-to-train and highly skilled workforce, and lead to savings in recruitment costs.
Moreover, engaging in such a program can merit tax incentives. These incentives, Seriosa said, are linked to the expenses a company pays to the TVI such as the allowances given to the students.
“Donations given to the TVIs will also be exempted from tax, and importation of machinery and equipment to be used by the trainees can be tax exempt as well,” she continued.
On the school’s part, adopting a DTS program can mean less investment in state-of-the-art equipment and facilities “because the students can be exposed to such machines during their deployment in the industry,” said Seriosa.
It can also lead to greater responsiveness to industries’ needs, increased collaboration with industries in designing an industry-tailored curriculum, and an enhanced public image and higher attractiveness to enrollees as it becomes common knowledge that the school has a strong partnership with a specific industry. Moreover, the school can boast of having readily available employers for their graduates.
Seriosa stressed that under the law, “a trainee is not to be considered as an employee of the company but as a trainee of both the TVI and the company.” This means no employer-employee relationship exists and thus there is “no coverage of mandatory benefits.”
She added that a DTS program also requires TESDA accreditation “to ensure quality training [and] prevent abuses in the implementation of the program.”
The expert shared that to implement a DTS program, some of the requirements include a course registered under the DTS; training agreement between the TVI, establishment, and trainee; a training plan; an industrial coordinator in the TVI; and a training coordinator in the enterprise.
The trainee’s age is an important consideration, she added. Students aged 15 and not over 18 years old should only be deployed in non-hazardous operations, while trainees 18 years and older may already be assigned to hazardous work.
“The training in school is only 40% while in the industry it’s 60%. However depending on the agreed plan, competencies standards and the required learning outcomes of the trainees, this can be adjusted,” Seriosa said.
On the training allowance, it should be “at least 75% of the prevailing minimum wage of the in-plant training area.”
