Aboitiz Construction eyes various strategies to acquire skilled manpower

Albert Ignacio Jr., president of Aboitiz Construction. /Irene R. Sino Cruz

CEBU CITY, Philippines—Faced with shortage of skilled workers, Aboitiz Construction Inc. (ACI) has come up with various strategies on how they will address their manpower needs for their various projects.

Albert Ignacio Jr., president of Aboitiz Construction, said they now accept applications of unskilled workers, who are willing to undergo training for their needed construction skills. Aboitiz Construction is the privately-held construction company of Aboitiz & Co. Its international arm is the Aboitiz Construction International Inc.

“We offer training for them to become skilled workers – welders, carpenters, pipefitters. Once they apply, we ask them (what they) want to do,” Ignacio said.

“Normally, the training, if they have basic skills on welding, for example, it will take a month or two.”

Ignacio said they also tie up with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), training institutes and universities to see if they could hire their graduates.

However, the company face stiff competition from Manila companies and companies that are located outside the Philippines, he added.

Aboitiz’s two construction firms would need 4,000 additional workers in the next three to five years for its various projects that include Aboitiz Land’s The Outlets in Lipa, Batangas; a storage facility in Subic; a power plant in Sarangani; a petrochemical plant in Bataan; and fabrication workers for North American and Australian companies, among others.

In addition, the company expanded its operation by entering the transmission and logistics markets after it closed negotiated contracts.

ACI entered into a P206-million contract to design and construct Lima Enerzone Corporation’s 69kV overhead transmission line for the Lima Technology Center in Lipa, Batangas.

On the other hand, ACI is working on the 202,000 square meter South Mega Distribution Center in Barangay Santiago, General Trias, Cavite as part of its collaboration with Metro Pacific Movers Inc.

The distribution center will facilitate the movement of goods and, at the same time, will generate thousands of local jobs./dcb