Unemployment rate drops for second consecutive month to 4.5% in April 2023

The unemployment rate dropped for the second consecutive month to 4.5 percent in April 2023, marking sustained improvements in the labor market.

“The resilience of the Philippines’ labor market bodes well for our efforts to transform the economy. To further boost job creation, enhance productivity, and improve the quality of jobs, we are prioritizing investments in infrastructure, education, and digitalization,” Finance Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said following the release of the April 2023 Labor Force Survey of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The employment rate increased to 95.5 percent from the 94.3 percent recorded in the same month last year, translating to 48.1 million employed persons in April 2023.

Likewise, the labor force participation rate (LFPR) increased to 65.1 percent or about 50.3 million Filipinos in the labor force (both employed and unemployed) from 63.4 percent in April 2022.

Meanwhile, the underemployment rate registered at 12.9 percent, lower than the 14 percent recorded in April last year. This indicates a continued improvement in the quality of employment in the country, which is also reflected in the increasing contribution of the more remunerative type of work, the employment of wage and salary workers, to total employment growth.

Youth unemployment rate also decreased to 10.0 percent from 12.3 percent in the same month last year.

By major sectors, Services remained as the top source of employment, with a 61.1-percent share of the total employed population. This was followed by Agriculture and Industry at 22 percent and 17 percent, respectively.

The year-on-year (YoY) increase in employment was driven by the Services sector, particularly Wholesale and retail trade, Accommodation and food service activities, Administrative and support service activities, and Transportation and storage.

Employment generation is a priority of the Marcos administration for a genuine social and economic transformation.

In the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028, the improvement of labor outcomes is guided by the government’s framework to increase income-earning ability.

Key outcomes include improving employability, expanding access to employment