Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda (MANILA BULLETIN)

Prices of rice--the country’s staple grain--are so impactful that they actually affect the quality of jobs available to Filipinos.

Thus, said economist-solon Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda as he gave his two cents Thursday, April 11 on the government’s February 2024 employment report that touted the country’s 96.5 percent employment rate.

"Cheaper rice means more and better jobs," said Salceda, chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means.

"With job quality improving, the key priority remains to be wage quality--how far current wages can go. That will be primarily driven by the price of rice," explained the Bicolano.

He said rice accounts for as much as 20.4 percent of the expenses of low-income workers.

"It also drove 57 percent of price increases in March 2024. Without the global rice price shock, Filipino workers would be enjoying better jobs that offer enough discretionary income for other expenses--such as entertainment, household durables, and other basic comforts," he said.

"As it stands, the country’s ability to generate more jobs in non-essential sectors is curtailed by rice inflation depleting disposable income," Salceda said.

The veteran congressman assured the public that the Marcos administration has been exploring solutions that will diversify the country’s rice sources and address its precarious position as the world’s largest importer of rice.

Likewise, he said the government has been implementing measures to endure the effects of El Niño, which directly impacts agriculture.

Further commenting on the employment report, Salceda says there are "encouraging signs of a consolidating jobs market".

"This job consolidation owes much to improved business sentiment under the Marcos administration," he said.

"The tops jobs growing sectors are more durable sectors, such as craft and related trades workers (511,000 more jobs), plant and machine operators (481,000 more jobs), while declines were recorded among less durable sectors like skilled agricultural workers (378,000 less jobs) and elementary occupations (782,000 less jobs)," he noted.