Job numbers steady, but fewer Filipinos joining the labor force — PSA

The Philippines maintained a steady employment rate of 96.1 percent in March 2025, mirroring the figure recorded in the same month last year, according to the latest Labor Force Survey released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

Despite the stable employment rate, the total number of Filipinos with jobs dropped by over a million, signaling concerns about labor market participation and underemployment.

A total of 48.02 million Filipinos were recorded as employed in March 2025, down from 49.15 million in both March 2024 and February 2025. The unemployment rate, meanwhile, remained unchanged year-on-year at 3.9 percent, slightly higher than the 3.8 percent recorded the previous month. This translated to 1.93 million jobless individuals, slightly lower than March 2024’s 2.00 million and almost the same as February 2025’s 1.94 million.

One of the striking figures in the report was the labor force participation rate (LFPR), which fell to 62.9 percent — its lowest point in recent months. This marks a significant decline from 65.3 percent in March 2024 and 64.5 percent in February 2025. The PSA noted that this drop meant fewer Filipinos aged 15 and above were actively working or seeking work, with the labor force shrinking to 49.96 million from over 51 million in both previous comparison periods.

Filipinos who were employed worked an average of 41.2 hours per week in March 2025, slightly higher than the 40.7 hours logged a year ago. However, the survey also recorded a higher underemployment rate, which rose sharply to 13.4 percent — up from 11.0 percent in March 2024 and 10.1 percent in February 2025. This means around 6.44 million workers were either looking for additional hours or new jobs with longer hours.

By sector, services remained the largest employer, accounting for 62.0 percent of total jobs. Agriculture followed at 20.1 percent, while industry made up 17.9 percent. While some sub-sectors experienced employment growth, such as education, administrative support, and fishing, others suffered sharp declines. Agriculture and forestry lost the most jobs, with 609,000 fewer workers compared to last year. The public sector also took a hit, shedding 394,000 jobs in public administration and defense.

Month-on-month, job losses were significant in construction (down by 473,000), wholesale and retail trade (439,000), and fishing (285,000). Meanwhile, employment rose in sectors like administrative support (182,000 more jobs), education (157,000), and manufacturing (115,000).

Wage and salary workers made up the largest segment of the workforce at 63.4 percent, with the majority employed in private establishments. Government employment accounted for 9.3 percent of total workers. Self-employed individuals made up 27.9 percent, while unpaid family workers comprised 6.6 percent.

Among the youth aged 15 to 24, the labor force participation rate dropped to 29.4 percent, down from 33.3 percent in March 2024 and 31.1 percent in February 2025. The youth employment rate also declined slightly to 89.0 percent, compared to 91.3 percent a year ago.