The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said improvement in the quality of job is seen as underemployment fell by 1.292 million.

The recent Labor Force Survey (LFS) released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the number of unemployed increased by 86,000 from 2.289 million in July 2023 to 2.375 million in July 2024.

Labor Chief Bienvenido Laguesma attributed the rise in jobless rate to the surge of new entrants in the labor market due to the graduation season as new graduates begin seeking employment.

Laguesma said DOLE will address this by enhancing our youth employability programs.

Meanwhile, this year, the country also saw an increase of 3.229 million economically active Filipinos with the labor force growing from 46.845 million in July 2023 to 50.074 million in July 2024.

“Employment gains span various sectors, and can be attributed to wholesale and retail trade, agriculture, accommodation and food services, construction, and public administration, demonstrating the broad-based nature of our economic recovery,” Laguesma noted.

The Labor chief vowed to continue implementing policies and programs that will create an enabling environment that enhances workers’ welfare and improvement in the quality of jobs.

“We are anticipating the positive impact of the Enterprise-Based Education and Training Bill, designed to address job-skills mismatches and boost apprenticeship programs to prepare a skilled and adaptable workforce,” Laguesma stressed.

“In the same vein, the Trabaho Para sa Bayan Act Plan now being finalized which is targeted to be completed by the end of this year will provide a significant boost to employment generation, promoting employability and competitiveness of workers, productivity improvement and supporting industry stakeholders, particularly MSMEs,” he added.

Laguesma reiterated that DOLE “remains steadfast in providing social protection especially for workers in vulnerable situations.”

“The DOLE reaffirms its dedication to fostering a thriving labor market in the Philippines through shared labor market governance and maintaining stability of labor management relations,” he continued.

“By addressing the gap between employed, unemployed, and underemployed, the DOLE aims to meet the evolving needs of workers and enterprises to ensure sustainable economic growth in support and furtherance of the Bagong Pilipinas vision,” he added.