Unemployment rate dipped slightly in January despite restrictions, effects of Typhoon Odette - DOLE

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said Saturday the country's unemployment rate fell slightly in January despite tougher COVID-19 restrictions due to the Omicron surge and the effects of Typhoon Odette.

The unemployment rate hit 6.4% in January, down 0.2% from the 6.6% recorded in December 2021.

The figure for January 2022 is the lowest since COVID-19 lockdowns peaked in April 2020, when the jobless rate reached an all-time high of 17.6%, representing 7.3 million Filipinos.

"The DOLE is elated with the better-than-expected employment data based on the January 2022 Labor Force Survey (LFS)," the department said in a statement.

"The 6.4% unemployment rate was achieved despite keeping most of the regions under Alert Level 3, the effects of the Omicron variant yet to ease, and the onslaught of Typhoon Odette already accounted for," it added.

Metro Manila and several other areas of the country were placed under Alert Level 3 from January 3 to January 31 to quell the spread of the Omicron variant.

Under Alert Level 3, several establishments will be allowed to operate at 30% indoor venue capacity but exclusively for fully vaccinated people and 50% outdoor venue capacity as long as employees are fully vaccinated.

In-person classes, contact sports, funfairs/perya, and casinos are among the activities and establishments that are prohibited under Alert Level 3.

Meanwhile, about 2.2 million workers were directly affected by Typhoon Odette, which caused devastation in the Visayas and Mindanao in December last year, according to a rapid impact assessment conducted by the International Labor Organization (ILO).

The employment rate improved to 93.6% from 93.4% in December.

"However, it was observed that employment level declined by 808,000 which can be attributed mostly to the seasonality of workers especially during December," the DOLE said.

The underemployment rate, on the other hand, slightly increased to 14.9% from 14.7% last December.

“As we continue to ease quarantine restrictions and open the economy, DOLE is upbeat that Labor Force Participation will rebound and will be able to sustain good, and even better employment figures, with the government continuing its recovery efforts through the National Employment Recovery Strategy (NERS) Task Force, among others, and the elections spending creating more demand for workers,” the department said.

“We remain vigilant on the effects of the Ukraine-Russia crisis, especially on the rising cost of fuel and energy that may affect industries that are still reeling from the effects of the pandemic,” it added.

The DOLE said more programs would be rolled out in the coming months, including the distribution of targeted subsidies amounting to P6.1 billion for transport, agriculture, and fisheries sector workers.

It also pushed for approval of a proposed wage subsidy for workers to keep jobs and relieve the financial burden on minimum wage earners, as well as a speedy resolution of wage hike petitions. — VBL, GMA News