Jan. jobless rate worst in six months; more join labor force amid fewer jobs

Published Mar 6, 2025, 1:04:35 PM

File photo. Dressmakers in an assembly line. The Philippine Statistics Authority attributed the higher jobless rate in January to so-called 'seasonality' when factories hire more contractual workers in the runup to the holidays and then cut jobs during lean months.

Metro Manila, Philippines - The country’s jobless rate rose to its worst in six months in January, as new vacancies failed to keep up with more people joining the labor force, the Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Thursday, March 6.

The unemployment rate was 4.3%, a level not seen since the second half of 2024 when the government had successive gains in trimming the ranks of the jobless to within the 3% mark.

The January jobs data meant 2.16 million people did not land jobs out of the 50.65 million-strong population aged at least 15 that made up the labor force that month.

The 2.16-million jobless matched January last year’s number, but with more people looking for work – 2.59 million fresh entrants to the labor force - and industries shedding jobs, the unemployment rate returned to 4% territory.

“Start ng October, nagpe-prepare na ang manufacturers in prep for Christmas season… Pero pagdating ng January round bumababa. So may seasonality na nakikita,” PSA Assistant Secretary and Deputy National Statistician Divina Gracia del Prado told a press briefing.

[Translation: Manufacturers prepared for the Christmas season beginning October. But by the January round, employment went down. Seasonality may be a possible reason.]

“112,000 ang nagsabi na naghihintay sila ng job recall at i-re-rehire sila,” she added.

[Translation: 112,000 people said they were waiting for job recall to be rehired.]

Factories, entertainment, construction and IT industries shed jobs, according to PSA data. Manufacturing alone cut headcount by 209,000 in January year-on-year.

But farms added 883,000 jobs on an annual basis;

Shops, +850,000;

Hotels and cafes, +533,000;

Transport, +141,000; and

Admin, +136,000.

Of the 48.49 million Filipinos with jobs, 13.3% of them were underemployed or wanted to have additional hours of work or a second job.

The January underemployment rate - another barometer of whether or not workers are happy with the state of the labor market - worsened from December’s 10.9%, but better than January 2024’s 13.7%.

File photo. Dressmakers in an assembly line. The Philippine Statistics Authority attributed the higher jobless rate in January to so-called 'seasonality' when factories hire more contractual workers in the runup to the holidays and then cut jobs during lean months.

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