Unemployment rate in the Philippines falls month-on-month

A report by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that there were 3.50 million people who were either unemployed or out of business in October, translating to a jobless rate of 7.4%.

Compared to 4.25 million jobless Filipinos recorded in September, which yielded an unemployment rate of 8.9%, the unemployment rate has fallen. However, the level in October was still higher when compared to the 6.9% seen in July.

By sector, the agriculture and forestry industry added 1.35 million jobs in October, the largest quarter-on-quarter increase in employment among industries, while the construction sector shed 291,000 workers quarter-on-quarter in October, the biggest drop among industries.

Although the unemployment rate has dropped, the underemployment rate in October was 16.1%, up from the 14.2% both in July and September. This means that even though more people got work in October, these jobs are less stable and do not pay workers enough to make ends meet, with the PSA reporting that 7.04 million Filipinos were looking for additional work in October to boost their earnings.

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PSA’s data also showed some Filipinos stopped their job search as there is not enough work for everyone. The labour force participation rate, representing people aged 15 years and above who are actively looking for jobs, stood at 62.6% in October to 47.33 million, lower than 63.3% rate in September, but still higher than the 59.8% in July, according to Philstar Global.