Unemployed ranks swell to 2.8m in slow Economy

Filipinos joined the number of jobless or underemployed people in the 12 months ending July this year as the slowing economy failed to create enough jobs for the rising population, the National Statistics Office said Thursday.

The number of unemployed reached 2.822 million—113,000 more than the 2.709 million jobless people polled the year before, the agency’s Labor Force Survey says.

Unemployed ranks swell

That pushed the unemployment rate to 7.1 percent from the 7.0 percent registered the year before, although the jobless rate in July eased slightly from the 7.2 percent notched in April.

The Asian Development Bank says the quality of growth in the Philippines has not been enough to create more Philippines Jobs.

“Job creation remains lackluster, with the youth unemployment rate more than double the overall jobless rate,” Changyong Rhee, the bank’s chief economist, said Wednesday.

“Further increases in investment along with policy and governance reforms are needed to boost jobs.”

The ADB on Wednesday cut its growth outlook for the Philippines this year amid the government’s subdued spending and the country’s flagging exports, but said the country could count on its large young population to boost growth in the coming years.

Joseph Zveglich Jr., the ADB’s assistant chief economist, on Wednesday said the Philippines could take advantage of its young population to boost its economy, but it must invest in educating and training its young people.

“You don’t get the dividends unless you create jobs,” Zveglich said.

The underemployment rate, or the ratio of individuals desiring more hours of work, climbed to 19.1 percent in July from 17.9 percent a year ago, the survey said. That translated to 7.095 million Filipinos who were underemployed as of July from just 6.502 million a year earlier.

The Statistics Office said the number of employed people as of July 2011 stood at 37.1 million for an employment rate of 92.9 percent.

Of those, 52.2 percent or the largest proportion were in the services sector, around 32.6 percent were in the agriculture sector, and 15.2 percent were in the industry sector.

Laborers and unskilled workers comprised the largest group or 32.6 percent of the total employed population, the Statistics Office said.

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