Twin natural disasters that struck Cebu in 2025 triggered a slight decline in the Central Visayas labor force and forced the closure of several manufacturing firms, regional statistics officials said Thursday.

The region’s labor force participation rate dipped to 63.9 percent in 2025, down from 64.7 percent the previous year, according to the latest Labor Force Survey highlights presented by the Philippine Statistics Authority in Central Visayas (PSA-7).

In terms of sheer volume, the active workforce — comprising individuals aged 15 and older — dropped to about 3.041 million Filipinos from 3.045 million in 2024.

PSA-7 regional director Wilma Perante attributed the contractions directly to two major environmental crises. Perante told DAILY TRIBUNE that the slight decline was due to the twin disasters that hit Cebu in 2025, specifically citing an earthquake in northern Cebu and typhoon “Tino.”

She added that several manufacturing companies closed down because of the twin disasters.

The regional economic disruptions also pushed the unemployment rate up to 3.8 percent in 2025, an increase from the 3.1 percent recorded in 2024. This left approximately 115,000 people jobless, up from 94,000 the prior year.

Consequently, the overall employment rate for Central Visayas contracted slightly to 96.2 percent from 96.9 percent, representing a loss of about 20,000 jobs as the total number of employed persons fell to 2.93 million.

The impact of the economic downturn varied sharply across the region’s provinces and highly urbanized cities.

Lapu-Lapu City recorded the highest labor force participation rate at 67.3 percent but simultaneously suffered the region’s highest unemployment rate at 5.3 percent and the lowest overall employment rate at 94.7 percent.