Unemployment rate rises to 3.9%
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Friday, December 6, said the country’s unemployment rate increased to 3.9% in October 2024.
The unemployment rate for September 2024 was 3.7% while the employment rate for October 2023 was 4.2%.
“In terms of magnitude, the number of unemployed individuals in October 2024 was posted at 1.97 million,” the PSA said in its report.
The employment rate for October 2024 is 96.1%, slightly down from 96.3% in September 2024.
Meanwhile, the underemployment rate for October 2024 increased to 12.6%, up from 11.9% in September 2024.
“In terms of magnitude, 6.08 million of the 48.16 million employed individuals expressed the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job or to have additional job, or to have a new job with longer hours of work in October 2024,” the PSA said.
The majority of those employed work in the service industry, which comprised 61.0% of employed persons in October 2024.
The following sub-sectors had the highest annual increases:
- Administrative and support service activities: Up by 247,000
- Accommodation and food service activities: Up by 215,000
- Transportation and storage: Up by 202,000
- Construction: Up by 121,000
- Mining and quarrying: Up by 101,000
Meanwhile, the following sub-sectors posted the the highest annual decreases:
- Fishing and aquaculture: Down by 213,000
- Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles: Down by 212,000
- Agriculture and forestry: Down by 183,000
- Manufacturing: Down by 123,000
- Other service activities: Down by 23,000
“Wage and salary workers continued to account for the largest share of employed persons with 63.8% of the total number of employed persons in October 2024,” the PSA said.
Self-employed persons without paid employees made up 27.7% while unpaid family workers accounted for 5.9%.
“Wage and salary workers continued to account for the largest share of employed persons with 63.8% of the total number of employed persons in October 2024,” the PSA said.
For wage and salary workers, 78.2% of them worked in private establishments. This is followed by those employed in government or government-controlled corporations, who comprised 14.6% of wage and salary workers.
The PSA follows the International Labor Organization's standards for employment, which state that a person who works at least one hour per week is considered employed.
The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) expressed optimism at the newest employment survey but acknowledged the uptick.
“The latest survey results show positive employment outcomes, with notable progress in reducing unemployment. Full-year headline figures reflect sustained improvement but underscore the need to intensify efforts to create more and better-quality jobs to meet the target set in the Philippine Development Plan by 2028,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said.
The Philippine Development Plan is targeting an unemployment rate within 4% to 5%.
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