Unemployment rate steady at 6% in June
The Philippines’ employment reached six per cent in June, mirroring May’s figures, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) Labor Force Survey.
During a press briefing, the PSA said that these latest numbers are a stark improvement from the 7.7% of June 2021.
The data also showed that unemployed Filipinos reached 2.990 million in June, 62,000 more than the 2.927 million in May. Meanwhile, the ranks of unemployed declined by 781,000 from 3.770 million a year ago.
On the other hand, the Filipino workforce expanded by around 570,000 month-on-month to 49.581 million.
The labor force participation rate (LFPR) — or the share of the Filipino workforce to the total working population — went up from 64% in May to 64.8% in June. It is the country’s highest record in three months.
The PSA stated that the job quality in the country is improving as the employment rate reaches 94%, and the underemployment rate is recorded at 12.6%.
Commenting on the current employment figures, National Economic and Development Authority (NED) Director-General Arsenio Balisacan
However, he added that the country needs a safe reopening of the economy to return to the high-growth path and reinvigorate job creation.
