By Adrian H. Halili, Reporter
THE PHILIPPINES’ unemployment rate went right down to 3.9% in May from 4.1% in April, with the number of people within the labor force hitting an all-time high, the federal government reported on Tuesday.
The variety of jobless Filipinos declined to 2.03 million in May from 2.06 million in April and a couple of.11 million a 12 months earlier, in keeping with the outcomes of the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) latest Labor Force Survey released on Tuesday.
12 months on 12 months, the jobless rate likewise went down from 4.1% in May 2024.
The country’s unemployment rate averaged at 4% in the primary five months of 2025, unchanged from the identical period last 12 months.
National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa attributed the drop within the May unemployment rate to a “substantial” growth within the ranks of Filipinos aged 15 years and older within the labor force.
“The rise in our labor force participation is substantial — there was a 1.35 million increase 12 months on 12 months,” he told a news briefing. “Normally, when labor force participation increases, unemployment also goes up. But this time is different — almost everyone was absorbed, and unemployment declined.”
“Our only concern is that underemployment increased (12 months on 12 months),” he added. “Our underemployment rate last 12 months was only 9.9%, it increased by 1.79 million to 13.1%. Those that entered the labor market, while they were employed, not all of them were full-time employees. So, additionally they contributed to the underemployment rate.”
PSA data showed that 52.32 million Filipinos were a part of the labor force in May, rising from 50.74 million in April and the 50.97 million working Filipinos recorded in May 2024.
This was the best recorded number since April 2005, which was when the PSA began tracking the information, it said.
The labor force participation rate (LFPR), or the proportion of the working-age population (15 years old and over) that is an element of the labor force, rose to 65.8% in May from 63.7% in April and 64.8% in the identical month last 12 months.
Meanwhile, the underemployment rate — those that want longer working hours or a further job — eased to 13.1% in May from 14.6% in April but climbed from 9.9% in the identical month last 12 months.
This translated to six.6 million Filipinos in search of additional jobs or longer working hours, 489,000 lower than the 7.09 million in April. 12 months on 12 months, this was up from 4.82 million in May 2024.
For the five-month period, the underemployment rate averaged 12.9%, up from 12.3% last 12 months.
Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio M. Balisacan said the rise in labor force participation in May indicated a “healthy and competitive” job market.
“Generally, a bigger workforce can result in increased economic output and potentially higher GDP (gross domestic product) growth, as more people contribute to the economy,” Mr. Balisacan said in a press release.
“This also reflects growing confidence within the labor market and the impact of ongoing efforts to expand access to employment opportunities across sectors,” he added.
The Philippines is targeting a GDP growth of 5.5%-6.5% for 2025.
The DEPDev added that the Philippine’s unemployment rate stays lower than those in China (5%) and India (5.6%), but higher than Malaysia (3%) and Vietnam (2.2%).
Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto said in a press release that higher labor participation shows that more Filipinos are seeing higher work opportunities and is an indication of economic development.
Mr. Balisacan said the federal government’s planned infrastructure projects may also help attract job-generating investments.
He added that efforts to equip Filipinos with in-demand skills and competencies may also help our workforce remain agile amid a competitive labor market
“We are going to leverage recently enacted policy reforms to enhance upskilling and reskilling initiatives.”
EMPLOYMENT RATE
The PSA also reported that the employment rate inched as much as 96.1% in May from 95.9% in each April 2025 and May 2024.
The variety of Filipinos with jobs grew to 50.29 million in May from 48.67 million the previous month and 48.87 million in the identical month last 12 months.
By sector, services remained the highest employer for the month, accounting for 61.8% of total employed individuals, followed by agriculture (21.1%) and the industry sector (17.1%).
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motorized vehicles and motorcycles saw the most important annual increase in jobs throughout the month, adding 489,000 jobs. This was followed by agriculture and forestry (469,000), administrative and support service activities (371,000), accommodation and food service activities (365,000), and other service activities (175,000).
Alternatively, manufacturing posted the most important annual decline in employment (374,000). This was followed by construction (298,000); mining and quarrying (82,000); public administration and defense and compulsory so-cial security (54,000); and water supply and sewerage, waste management and remediation activities (50,000).
By class of employee, wage and salary employees accounted for 62.8% of the workforce in May, followed by self-employed individuals without paid employees (27.9%), unpaid family employees (7.5%), and employers in family-operated farms or businesses (1.8%).
Working hours averaged 39.8 hours per week in May, barely lower than the 39.9 hours in April. Average working hours also fell 12 months on 12 months from the 40.6 hours per week recorded in May 2024.
INFLATION WOES
Nevertheless, analysts said the rise in labor participation seen in May was likely a results of inflation concerns.
“High inflation, uncertainties, and insufficient employment opportunities made people, including people who were initially a part of the labor force, exit and contribute to the financial resources of the family. Having only one earner within the family isn’t any longer enough — not even two earners,” Maria Ella Calaor-Oplas, an economics professor who makes a speciality of human capital development research at De La Salle University, said in a Facebook Messenger chat.
She added that the midterm elections likely boosted employment opportunities.
“The LFPR is plausibly increasing because family incomes are so low, and costs of basic goods and services are so expensive, that more household members are driven to more actively seek work,” IBON Foundation Executive Director Jose Enrique “Sonny” A. Africa likewise said in a Viber message. “Unpacking this seemingly favorable increase shows increasingly more Filipinos attempting to scrape out a living from whatever informal and poor-quality work they’ll find from an economy that’s failing to create regular and decently paying work.”
Mr. Africa said the federal government should concentrate on developing the agriculture and industrial sectors to spice up employment.
Federation of Free Employees President Jose Sonny G. Matula also said that the federal government should concentrate on domestic-led job creation by supporting small businesses and cooperative and rural enterprises and providing higher wages, because the year-on-year increase in underemployment shows that many roles within the country are “still low-paying or insecure.”