File photo courtesy of DOLE NCR.
QUEZON CITY (PIA) — The labor situation in the country registered a recovery in August with an increase in the number of employed Filipinos, while the number of unemployed and underemployed declined, based on the results of the Labor Force Survey reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Tuesday, October 8.
National statistician and PSA chief Claire Dennis Mapa said the unemployment rate dropped to 4.0 percent in August this year from 4.4 percent in the same month last year. The unemployment rate also declined from 4.7 percent in July.
“In terms of magnitude, the number of unemployed individuals in August 2024 was registered at 2.07 million. This was lower than the estimated number of unemployed persons of 2.22 million in August 2023 and 2.38 million in July 2024,” he said.
“The country’s employment rate in August 2024 was estimated at 96.0 percent. This was higher than the estimated employment rate in August 2023 at 95.6 percent and in July 2024 at 95.3 percent,” he added.
The PSA noted the following highlights in the August 2024 Labor Force Survey:
In terms of level, the number of employed persons in August 2024 was estimated at 49.15 million. This was higher than the number of employed persons in August 2023 at 48.07 million and in July 2024 at 47.70 million.
The unemployment rate in August 2024 was recorded at 4.0 percent, lower than the estimated unemployment rate in August 2023 at 4.4 percent and in July 2024 at 4.7 percent.
The labor force participation rate (LFPR) in August 2024 was registered at 64.8 percent, higher than the estimated LFPR in August 2023 at 64.7 percent. In July 2024, the LFPR was estimated at 63.5 percent.
The reported LFPR in August 2024 translates to a total of 51.22 million Filipinos aged 15 years old and over who were in the labor force, or those who were either employed or unemployed. The number of individuals aged 15 years old and over who were in the labor force was 50.29 million in August 2023 and 50.07 million in July 2024.
On average, employed persons worked 40.7 hours per week. This was lower than the average hours worked in a week in August 2023 at 40.8 hours and in July 2024 at 41.1 hours per week.
The underemployment rate in August 2024 decreased to 11.2 percent, from 11.7 percent in August 2023 and 12.1 percent in July 2024.
In terms of magnitude, 5.48 million of the 49.15 million employed individuals expressed the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job, to have an additional job, or to have a new job with longer hours of work in August 2024.
By broad industry group, the services sector continued as the top sector in terms of the number of employed persons, with a share of 63.3 percent of the 49.15 million employed persons. The agriculture and industry sectors accounted for 19.3 percent and 17.4 percent of the employed persons, respectively. (PIA DMD)
