Jobless Filipinos down to 1.62M in June 2024 —PSA

The number of unemployed Filipinos dropped to 1.62 million in June this year from 2.11 million in May but there were more Filipinos seeking extra working hours or an additional job, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday.

The PSA said this translates to a 3.1% unemployment rate in June 2024, lower than the 4.1% logged in May 2024 and 4.5% recorded in June last year.

"In terms of magnitude, the number of unemployed individuals in June 2024 was registered at 1.62 million," the PSA said. 

It added that the number is lower than 2.33 million unemployed individuals recorded in June 2023 and 2.11 million logged in May 2024. 

Meanwhile, the country’s employment rate was posted at 96.9% in June 2024, higher than the employment rate estimated in June 2023 at 95.5%  and in May 2024 at 95.9 percent. 

"In terms of level, the number of employed persons in June 2024 was recorded at 50.28 million," the PSA said. 

"This was higher than the number of employed persons of 48.84 million in June 2023 and 48.87 million in May 2024," it added.

The services sector accounted for 58.7% of the employed persons, followed by agriculture with 21.1%, and industry with 20.2%.

In terms of sub-sectors, the biggest annual increases were seen in construction, wholesale and retail trade, accommodation and food service activities, manufacturing, and transportation.

“The government’s swift implementation of infrastructure projects and the continued improvement of operating conditions for manufacturing firms have led to these employment gains,” National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said in a statement.

“Increasing investments in renewable energy, water supply, and mining and quarrying have also supported employment growth in these areas,” he added.

Meanwhile, the biggest year-on-year decreases were seen in agriculture and forestry, public administration and defense, fishing and aquaculture, education, and financial and insurance activities.

Bulk or 63.8% of employed Filipinos were wage and salary workers, while self-employed persons without any paid employee accounted for 27.0%. Unpaid family workers stood at 5.0%, while employers in their own family-operated farm or business had 1.7%.

“To sustain these gains, we will persist in improving the country’s business climate to attract investments that generate higher-quality jobs. The government will address bottlenecks and expedite processes to fulfill investment pledges and reap the benefits of liberalization reforms,” Balisacan said.

Employed Filipinos worked an average of 40.9 hours per week during the month, up from 40.6 hours in May and 40.0 hours the same month in 2023.

The number of unemployed or those who expressed desire to have additional hours of work or to have an additional job, however, increased to 6.08 million from 4.81 million in May and 5.87 million in June 2023.

This translated to an underemployment rate of 12.1%, higher than the 9.9% the previous month and 12.0% the previous year.

The labor force participation rate for the month was posted at 66.0%, translating to a total of 51.90 million Filipinos aged 15 and above who were in the labor force. This compares with the 64.8% in the previous month, and the 66.1% the past year. —KBK, GMA Integrated News