SENATOR Joel Villanueva has called on the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) and other relevant agencies to work for an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-ready national employment master plan.
Villanueva issued the call following a recent World Bank report that highlighted a decline in the share of high-skilled workers in the services sector–from 20 percent to just 6 percent due to the growing awareness and adoption of Generative AI (GenAI).
According to the World Bank, sectors such as finance and insurance were among the most vulnerable to AI disruptions, followed by management and enterprise operations, as well as information-based businesses.
“Our employment plan needs to be AI-ready in all aspects because the jobs and livelihoods of our kababayans (countrymen) are on the line,” Villanueva said.
Villanueva is the principal author and sponsor of Republic Act No. 11962, also known as the Trabaho Para sa Bayan (TPB) Act.
The senator emphasized the importance of establishing a dedicated technical working group within the TPB’s Inter-Agency Council to develop dynamic and innovative policies or programs for a globally competitive Philippine workforce in AI and technologically advanced world of work.