The secretary of the Department of Labor, Briseida Torres, resigned immediately on Tuesday amid the avalanche of applications for unemployment benefits and criticism for her response to the crisis caused by the COVID-19.
His resignation comes after a meeting he held this afternoon with the governor Wanda Vázquez Garced in La Fortaleza and, according to the official, her departure is for “personal reasons”.
“In the past 24 hours a personal situation has arisen that I cannot postpone and to which I have to dedicate a large part of my energy, which limits my dedication to DTRH the time it requires and deserves. I am sure that the projects that are underway and the effort of the employees will guarantee the continuity of the services, ”Torres said in a press release.
Grateful to my team and employees of the @DTRHPR who have given the maximum since day one of this emergency. I am sure that they will continue working for the welfare of the workers. Thanks to Governor Hon. @wandavazquezg for your trust. pic.twitter.com/yYKg87bZZB
– Briseida Torres Reyes (@BriseidaDTRH) June 9, 2020
Javier Villa, the agency’s press officer, He had said that the secretary’s departure would be effective on June 15, but the letter he sent to Vázquez Garced affirms the opposite..
“I notify you that effective today (June 9), I present my resignation from the position. I deeply appreciate your trust and the opportunity offered to work alongside my colleagues and public servants of the DTRH, who in this crisis have exercised their vocation and have worked as hard way to assist our population, “says the letter.
In the midst of the emergency that the country is going through, many citizens have received unemployment benefits late, while others, more than two months after the start of the pandemic, still do not have help.
Despite this, Torres argued that 260,000 people have received their benefits and that the agency has disbursed more than $ 1.2 billion since April 1.
“I feel very honored to have been able to collaborate for the rights of working women and place them as a priority in the execution of public policy, as well as in reopening the doors to the different union groups, provoking communication channels necessary to achieve peace. In the same way, we continue the efforts that allowed to reach historical indicators regarding the labor market and decrease the unemployment rate to the lowest registered in more than 40 years. The work plans for this purpose had a recognized progress, “he stressed. .
This morning the agency announced that it would enable a dating system to serve citizens with problems in their unemployment application. Until now the department remains serving citizens through “servicarros” located across the island. The main one is located in the Convention Center, in Miramar, where hundreds of people go daily.
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