Ricardo Enriquez Reyes Jr. (born April 12, 1950), commonly known as Ricky Reyes or Mother Ricky, is a Filipino hairdresser, philanthropist, and businessman. He is the owner of the Ricky Reyes chain of salons and host of the television program "Gandang Ricky Reyes".
Gandang Ricky Reyes salon at SM City Baliuag.
Biography
The money he earned from sweeping floors was used as capital for his first beauty parlor in 1978. Reyes now has a 44-branch network of Gandang Ricky Reyes salons.[1]
Philanthropy
Reyes’ philanthropic work began in 1984 when he initiated the "Isang Gunting, Isang Suklay" ("One Scissor, One Comb") program which gave free livelihood training to the people of Dasmariñas, Cavite. "We started with giving free haircuts," says Reyes, "but then I remembered the lesson about teaching people how to fish..." This led to the foundation of the Ricky Reyes Learning Institute (RRLI) where he makes education accessible to youth unable to afford college education. The vocational school offers a range of courses in hotel and restaurant services, as well as technical courses in cosmetology conducted by TESDA-certified professionals.
In 2010, Reyes was cited by Forbes magazine as one of the 48 Heroes of Philanthropy list in the Asia-Pacific region.[2] He was selected for his work on health care and job training, particularly involving CHILD Haus (Center for Health Improvement and Life Development), a halfway house for poor, cancer-stricken children from provinces who are seeking treatment in Metro Manila hospitals and for leading a team of volunteers in feeding about 50,000 victims of Tropical Storm Ondoy for two weeks.
Controversy
In 2015, Renato Nocos, a former employee of Reyes' chain of salons, filed a discrimination case against his employer. Reyes fired Nocos after he found out that he is positive with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The camp of Reyes denied the claim.[3] In February 2016, the National Labor Relations Commission had found Reyes guilty on the said case. Reyes ordered to reinstate Nocos in his job and pay 600,000 pesos worth of back wages and benefits.[4]
