MANILA, Philippines — According to a report released on Monday by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the number of unemployed Filipinos climbed in May for the third consecutive month.
In May, the rate of unemployment nationwide increased a little from 4.0 percent in April to 4.1 percent. Compared to the 4.3 percent recorded in May of the previous year, this figure is still lower. Due to the increase, the number of jobless Filipinos has risen to 2.11 million, which is 70,000 more than the 2.04 million that was recorded in April.
Since January 2024, when it was 4.5%, this represents the biggest increase in the unemployment rate.
Positively, underemployment, which counts people looking for more hours or work, dropped from 14.6 percent in April and 11.7 percent in May of previous year to 9.9 percent in May. The number of underemployed people was 4.82 million, and they included people who desire to work more hours at their current job, take on extra occupations, or find a new career with more hours.
In addition, the PSA stated that there were 48.87 million employed people in May, up from 48.26 million in April and 48.26 million in the previous year. With 61.1 percent of the work force, the services sector led the way in hiring. There was an increase in the Labor Force Participation Rate from 64.1 percent in April to 64.8 percent in May.
