November 2022 Labor Force Survey records lowest unemployment rate since 2005

The November 2022 Labor Force Survey (LFS) recorded the lowest unemployment rate since April 2005 at 4.2 percent. This is a decrease from the 4.5 percent a month ago, and is even lower than the 6.5 percent outturn in November 2021.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimates that there were 2.2 million unemployed individuals in November 2022. This means that there were 982,444 or 31.1 percent fewer unemployed individuals compared to the same month in 2021.

Employment, on the other hand, climbed to 49.7 million in November 2022, or an additional 4.2 million  employment year-on-year (YoY). The increase was mainly driven by wage and salary workers, specifically those employed in private establishments, which make up 48.1 percent of the employed population.

The November 2022 LFS also saw the highest labor force participation rate (LFPR) since April 2005. The LFPR improved to 67.5 percent, which is a 3.2 million increase from the 64.2 percent a year ago. This translates to about 51.8 million Filipinos in the labor force.

The quality of employment further improved YoY with the underemployment rate decreasing to 14.4 percent. This is relative to 16.7 percent in the same period a year ago, and down to around 7.1 million from the 7.6 million underemployed persons in November 2021.

The labor market recovered 7.2 million jobs—the highest since the beginning of the pandemic in January 2020. This development exhibits the country’s strong economic recovery.

By major sectors, Services had the highest growth at 20.7 percent, followed by Industry at 12.4 percent, and Agriculture at 10.6 percent.

Compared to November 2021, the Services and Industry sectors continued their gains with double-digit growths of 13.9 percent and 13.6 percent, respectively. These sectors accounted for 78.6 percent of the total employed persons for November 2022.

Due to the increased economic activity observed during the holidays, the Services sector saw the biggest gains in employment. The Wholesale and retail sub-sector took the lead, which generated 1.3 million new jobs. This was followed by Accommodation and food services (749,694), and Transportation and storage (490,586).

In the youth category, the unemployment rate significantly dropped to 8.4 percent from 13.4 percent a year ago. Youth underemployment rate likewise improved to 11.6 percent from 16.6 percent last year.

“We anticipate the year to culminate with a resilient labor market as economic activity from the holiday season will further boost domestic demand, helping us achieve our economic growth targets,” remarked Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno.

The government has laid out its plans for economic and social transformation through the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023-2028 to further improve the quantity and quality of jobs in the country. Further improvements on business regulations and bureaucratic efficiency will help attract investors that could stimulate the country’s labor market.

“The government will continue to implement policies and programs to increase employability, expand access to employment opportunities, and achieve shared labor market governance to fully recover employment losses from the pandemic to protect the country’s labor market from the possible global economic slowdown in 2023,” said Secretary Diokno.