2.38M jobless Filipinos in July - PSA

Metro Manila, Philippines — Around 2.38 million Filipinos were jobless in July, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed Friday, Sept. 6.

The latest tally was higher than June’s 1.62 million, the PSA said in a briefing.

The national unemployment rate for July this year stood at 4.7%, which means for every 1,000 Filipinos, 47 are without work. It is higher than the 4% in June.

Metro Manila topped the unemployment rate with 6.5%.

Six regions also logged unemployment numbers beyond the 4.7% national average. These are the National Capital Region, Ilocos Region, Calabarzon, Bicol Region, Western Visayas, and Northern Mindanao.

PSA said the manufacturing industry had the biggest drop in employment.

National Statistician and PSA Undersecretary Dennis Mapa said the decline in youth employment contributed to higher unemployment numbers.

“Ito ay parang 43% contribution doon sa total unemployed 2.38 million. So doon sa 2.38 million, 1.02 (million) sa kanila iyong youth unemployed, iyong 15-24,” Mapa said.

[Translation: This has a 43% contribution to the total number of unemployed Filipinos at 2.38 million. Of the 2.38 million, 1.02 million were from the youth sector - those 15 to 24 years old]

Meanwhile, the underemployment rate was steady at 12.1% - with 5.78 million people seeking more jobs.

In a statement, the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said its job market outlook remains optimistic, reiterating its commitment to attract investments for job creation.

NewsWatch Plus correspondent Lance Mejico and multi-platform producer Jelo Mantaring contributed to this report