An employment program for former prisoners, which enlists the help of the private sector has been proposed in the House of Representatives.

Camarines Sur Rep. Diosdado Arroyo and his mother, former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Arroyo, made the pitch under their House Bill 6716, which seeks to make employment opportunities accessible to ex-convicts by providing state incentives to private establishments hiring inmates, such as an additional deduction from gross income tax.

The additional deduction will then equivalent to 15 percent of total amount paid as salaries and wages to former prisoners.

The younger Arroyo noted that such measure is crucial, considering that most employers, if not all, are reluctant to hire former prisoners because of their criminal record.

“The former prisoners are raring to be reunited with their loved ones just as much as they want to find gainful work so they can provide for their families. Sad to say, former prisoners have a slimmer chance of being employed after their release and this makes it extra difficult for them to reform,” the younger Arroyo pointed out.

House Bill 6716 also provides for the creation of the committee on employment opportunities for former prisoners under the Department of Justice, which will be responsible for drafting the implementing rules and regulations for the training and employment of former prisoners.

“It would be unfair if former prisoners are denied of a decent source of livelihood brought about by the stigma of their delinquent past,” Diosdado said in a closing remark.