Unemployment Rate Posted at 7.

6 Percent in July 2009 Results from the July 2009 Labor Force Survey (LFS)
Reference Number:
2009-085
Release Date:
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
The number of unemployed persons in July 2009 was estimated at 2.9 million persons, higher by 6.3
percent than the estimate reported last year of the same survey period at 2.7 million persons. However,
the current unemployment rate of 7.6 percent is not significantly different from the July 2008 rate which
was 7.4 percent.
Across regions, the National Capital Region (NCR) (12.1%) and CALABARZON (11.1%) posted the
highest unemployment rate and lowest in ARMM at 3.4 percent.
The latest survey also revealed the current employment rate at 92.4 percent. Last year's employment rate
was 92.6 percent. The National Capital Region recorded the lowest employment rate at 87.9 percent.
Aside from NCR, CALABARZON (88.9%) had employment rate lower than the national employment rate.
Of the estimated 59.5 million population 15 years old and over in July 2009, about 38.4 million persons
were reported to be in the labor force. This translates to a labor force participation rate (LFPR) of 64.6
percent as compared to last year's LFPR of 64.3 percent. Among the regions, Northern Mindanao
registered the highest LFPR at 71.2 percent and lowest in ARMM at 59.1 percent.
Of the estimated 35.5 million employed persons in July 2009, more than half (51.5%) worked in the
services sector with those employed in wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles
and personal and household goods sub-sector comprising the largest sub-sector (18.9% of the total
employed). Workers in the agriculture sector accounted for 33.6 percent of the total employed, with
workers in the agriculture, hunting and forestry making up the largest sub-sector (29.5% of the total
employed). Only 14.8 percent of the total employed were in the industry sector.
Among the various occupation groups, laborers and unskilled workers comprised the largest proportion
(33.0%) of the total employed population. Farmers, forestry workers and fishermen were the second
largest group, accounting for 16.2 percent of the total employed population.
Employed persons fall into any of these categories: wage and salary workers, own account workers and
unpaid family workers. Wage and salary workers are those who work for private households, private
establishments, government or government corporations and those who work with pay in own-family
operated farm or business. More than half (55.3%) of the employed persons were wage and salary
workers, more than one-third (33.9%) were own-account workers, and 10.8 percent were unpaid family
workers. Among the wage and salary workers, those working for private establishments comprised the
largest proportion (40.8% of the total employed). Government workers or those working for government
corporations comprised only 8.3 percent of the total employed, while 6.0 percent were workers in private
households. Meanwhile, among the own account workers, the self-employed comprised the majority
(29.5% of total employed).
Employed persons are classified as either full-time workers or part-time workers. Full-time workers are
those who work for 40 hours or more while part-time workers work for less than 40 hours. Around 23.0
million employed persons (64.9%) were working full time in July 2009, while, 34.1 percent of total
employed were part-time workers or worked for less than 40 hours.
Employed persons who express the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job or to have
additional job, or to have a new job with longer working hours are considered underemployed. The
number of underemployed persons in July 2009 was estimated at 7.0 million, placing the
underemployment rate at 19.8 percent. More than half (54.5%) of the total underemployed were reported
as visibly underemployed or working for less than 40 hours during the reference week. Those working for
40 hours or more accounted for 43.9 percent of the total underemployed. Most of the underemployed
were working in the agriculture sector (44.1%) and services sector (40.3%). The underemployed in the
industry sector accounted for 15.6 percent.

The number of unemployed persons was higher among males (60.7%) than among females (39.3%). By
age group, for every 10 unemployed persons, five (52.8%) belonged to age group 15-24 years while 28.0
percent of the total unemployed were in the age group 25-34.
Across educational groups, among the unemployed, the high school graduates comprised more than onethird (33.0%), the college undergraduates comprised about one-fifth (21.5%), while the college graduates,
19.7 percent.

(Sgd.) CARMELITA N. ERICTA

Administrator

Technical Notes

Starting with the July 2003 round of the Labor Force Survey (LFS), the generation of the labor
force and employment statistics adopted the 2003 Master Sample Design.

Using this master sample design, the number of samples increased from 41,000 for LFS
conducted from January 1997 to April 2003 to around 51,000 sample households for July 2003
and subsequent rounds of the LFS.

The 1992 four-digit code for Philippine Standard Occupational Classification (PSOC) and 1994
Philippine Standard Industrial Classification (PSIC) were used in classifying the occupation and
industry.

Starting April 2005, the new unemployment definition was adopted per NSCB Resolution Number
15 dated October 20, 2004. As indicated in the said resolution, the unemployed include all
persons who are 15 years and over as of their last birthday and are reported as: (1) without work
and currently available for work and seeking work; or (2) without work and currently available for
work but not seeking work for the following reasons:
1.) Tired/believed no work available
2.) Awaiting results of previous job application
3.) Temporary illness/disability
4.) Bad weather
5.) Waiting for rehire/job recall

Source:

Starting with the January 2007 LFS round, the population projections based on the 2000 Census
of Population was adopted to generate the labor force statistics. This is in compliance with NSCB
Resolution No. 1 series of 2005 entitled "Adoption of the Methodology Used in Generating the
2000 Census of Population and Housing-Based National Population Projections".

Income and Employment Statistics Division

Household Statistics Department
National Statistics Office
Manila, Philippines

Rising unemployment and poverty in the Philippines

By Dante Pastrana
6 April 2009

The Philippine economy is reeling under the impact of the global recession, with growth rates
slowing from 7.3 percent in 2007 to 4.6 percent in 2008 and a further steep decline expected this
year. While the country is not as heavily reliant on exports as Singapore or Thailand, exports
nevertheless averaged nearly 45 percent of GDP between 2003 and 2008.
Last year exports fell sharply. Merchandise exports contracted by 1.7 percent, electronics by 24.3
percent, garments by 6.5 percent and other manufactured products by 32.9 percent. Exports of
mineral products slid 2.92 percent, down from a growth of more than 20 percent in 2007.
Agricultural exports measured by value rose 28 percent but only because of rising prices. By
volume, this sector also declined by 2 percent.
The Philippines other major exportcheap labourrose sharply by 28 percent, up from 1.4
percent growth in 2007. More than 1.376 million workers left the country looking for work.
Compared to 2007, remittances rose last year by 15 percent to $17 billion, according to the
World Bank.
Three months into 2009, eight of the countrys top ten export destinationsincluding the US, its
main trading partnerare in recession. As a result, the Philippine government has been forced to
revise its forecast for 2009 downward from a range of 3.7-4.7 percent to 3.7-4.4 percent. Other
predictions are worseranging from 3.8 percent by the Development Bank of Singapore to 1.8
percent by the Union Bank of Switzerland.
New year-on-year data for January 2009 underscored the dimming economic prospects. Exports
dropped by 41 percent after falling sharply in December by 40 percent. Exports of manufactured
goods, which comprise 84.8 percent of the total, decreased year-on-year by 39.9 percent.
Agricultural commodities dropped by 38.5 percent and mineral products by 43 percent.
Recently released Labor Department figures for 2008 attempted to paint a picture of a resilient
labour market, highlighting the departments claim that over 530,000 jobs were generated in
2008. The figure was well below the 924,000 jobs created in 2007 and far less than the
governments annual target of 1.6 million jobs. Nearly half262,000were in agriculture,
forestry and hunting, with average pay of $US2.7 a day, barely above the UN poverty threshold
of $2 a day. The governments minimum cost-of-living for a family of six is over $18 a day.
The Labor Department report acknowledged that losses of better-paid jobs in other areas had
been high. In manufacturing, 135,000 jobs with an average basic daily pay of $6 were axed. The
electricity sector lost 5,000 jobs with an average daily pay of $9. In transport, 9,000 jobs with an
average daily pay of $7 were destroyed.
Intel Corporation shut down an assembly test facility on Luzon Island and terminated 1,800
workers, more than half its 3,000 workforce. By the midyear, it expected to halt production
altogether. Panasonic announced plans to close a battery factory, with 60 employees to be
terminated. The business processing and outsourcing company, Accenture, announced a 50
percent cut in its 1,000-strong workforce. Another electronics company, Amkor Technology,
retrenched 1,500 workers, 20 percent of its workforce. More recently, Fujitsu announced 2,000
job cuts last month, to take effect on April 18.

The official estimate for unemployment in 2008 was 7.4 percent or 2.7 millionan increase of
0.1 percent from 2007. These figures, however, are a gross understatement. The government
defines the unemployed as those who are simultaneously without work, looking for work and
immediately available for work.
Moreover, working is broadly defined to include unpaid work for family businesses (a small
farm or a small variety store) and working for oneself (street vendors, jeepney drivers). If the 4.1
million unpaid workers in family businesses, and just half of the over 10 million self-employed
were included, the jobless total would be more than 11 million people among those 15 years and
older.
In its fourth quarter survey, the Social Weather Stations (SWS), a survey group, found that 11
million people or 27.9 percent of the adult labour force (over 18 years) were unemployed. The
result was based on face-to-face interviews with 1,500 people across the country. Since 2005,
SWS surveys have shown an unemployment rate in double figures. In 2007, 17.5 percent were
unemployed despite record economic growth of more than 7 percent.
In another survey, SWS reported a record 23.7 percent increase in the number of families
experiencing hunger at least once in three months, to 4.3 million families or more than 20 million
people.
According to a 2006 government survey, more than 27.6 million Filipinos or 32.9 percent of the
population are poor. The figure includes those who could not provide in a sustained manner for
their minimum basic needs for food, health, education, housing, and other social amenities of
life. The number of subsistence poorthose unable to provide enough to eatwere over 12.2
million. The figures are undoubtedly worse today.
The government estimates that 935,700 workers are at risk of losing their jobs both locally and
abroad this year. Over 362,000 jobs in the export sector are under threat90 percent of those are
in the electronics, garments and ignition wiring sub-sectors.
More than 500,000 overseas jobs are under threat. There are 129,000 temporary workers in the
recession-wracked US. Also in recession are South Korea and Taiwan, which between them
employ 200,000 Filipino factory workers. Another 48,000 housemaids are employed in Hong
Kong and Singapore, which are both contracting economically.
In addition, the government estimates that 130,000 seamen on cruise ships are facing layoffs.
Japanese ship owners, according to Agence France Presse, have notified the government that
more than 40,000 crew members on car carriers, bulk carriers and container ships will be laid off
as world trade continues to slow.
President Gloria Arroyos administration has responded by shifting the burden onto working
people. Labour regulations are set to be relaxed to allow for unpaid overtime and a compressed
work week. Nearly half the workforce is employed in the so-called informal sector where
workers are not even protected by the countrys weak labour code and regulations and receive
less than the minimum legal wage.
As the economy sinks further and unemployment continues to grow, a social explosion is
building up as working people find it increasingly impossible to make ends meet.