Here’s my translation: The world of hiring and the office environment are not strong meritocracies. They are influenced by your sex, age, height, race and personality. It doesn’t matter what you do, it only matters what you’re seen to do. It doesn’t matter what you know, it only matters what people think you know. Certifications, while absolutely no proof or indication of skill or ability, are a way to influence some people to think about you positively (while not others) and to show that you’re willing to make efforts to improve, even if that doesn’t necessarily mean actually improving or having proof of that improvement.
Obviously I’m talking strictly about the certification, not the content of any course that provides a certification, which are two different things. The answer to “are software testing courses that provide certification worth it?” is “Some of them, most likely. Apart from the certification bit.”