Unemployment slightly increased in September 2021 as the country’s economic centers remained under stringent quarantine and as weather disturbances affected agriculture, but employment prospects remain promising as the country shifts to granular lockdowns, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said.
As reported by the Philippine Statistics Authority on Nov. 4, unemployment increased from 8.1% in August to 8.9% in September 2021.
The labor force participation rate also marginally declined from 63.6% to 63.3% in the same period.
“These results were expected as many parts of the country remained under stringent and blanket quarantines for most of the survey period. In particular, the modified enhanced community quarantine was extended in the National Capital Region (NCR) up to September 15,” said NEDA Sec. Karl Kendrick T. Chua.
The higher unemployment rate, combined with the lower labor force participation rate, led to a net employment loss of 642,000.
The biggest driver of the net employment loss during the period was agriculture, as Typhoon Jolina affected some 30,000 hectares of agricultural land across the regions of Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, and Eastern Visayas, and contributed to the around 900,000 employment loss in the sector. This decline came after the sector regained 1.9 million employment in August.
Meanwhile, employment increased by 414,000 in the services sector, mostly driven by wholesale and retail trade, tempering the net employment loss in September.
Underemployment also continued to decrease from 14.7% in August to 14.2% in September, as more people found more productive work.
Chua added that better labor outcomes in October can be expected when the country sees the full impact of the implementation of granular lockdowns in NCR. This strategy has been effective in bringing down cases from its peak in early September, he said.
“Overall, the economy has generated 1.1 million employment above the pre-pandemic level. This signals the Philippines’ continuing recovery. We look forward to the expansion of the alert level and granular lockdown system to the whole country to recover more jobs and livelihoods,” said the NEDA chief. (NEDA) – jlo
