Following the report that there are almost three million jobless Filpinos, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said on Saturday, March 19, that the national government’s move to ease the country’s quarantine restrictions and open the economy would boost the employment rate nationwide.
According to the DOLE, the January 2022 Labor Force Survey (LFS) result showed that the country’s employment rate increased by one percent from October 2021 to January this year.
“The 6.4 percent unemployment rate was achieved despite keeping most regions under Alert Level 3. The employment rate significantly increased by one percentage point – from 92.6 percent in October 2021 to 93.6 percent in January 2022,” DOLE said in a statement
The data also showed a decline in employment level by 808,000 last December.
Likewise, labor force participation has decreased by over a million from 47.330 million in October 2021 to 45.943 million in January due to tighter restrictions imposed after the surge of cases following the holiday season.
With the lowering of alert levels nationwide, DOLE expressed its optimism that the Labor Force Participation will sustain better employment figures as the government continues its recovery efforts through the National Employment Recovery Strategy (NERS) Task Force.
“In the coming months, more programs will be rolled out by the government which are expected to improve the labor market condition. Among these is the distribution of targeted subsidies amounting to P6.1 billion for the transport, agriculture, and fisheries sector workers; cash transfers of P2,400 for the bottom 50 percent of households,” DOLE said.
Aside from these programs, the DOLE has also appealed to the national government to approve the proposed P24 billion worth of wage subsidy for workers affected by the pandemic and global crisis.