Jobless rate rises to 4.7% in July

The country's unemployment rate rose to 4.7 percent in July, the highest in a year as more young Filipinos joined the labor force but were unable to find jobs, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

-  LOUELLA DESIDERIO

Preliminary results of the Labor Force Survey released yesterday by the PSA showed that the latest unemployment rate was the highest since the 4.9 percent in the same period last year, translating to 2.38 million jobless Filipinos.

This is also higher than the 3.1 percent unemployment rate in June.

National Statistician Dennis Mapa attributed the higher unemployment rate to the increase in the number of young people or those in the 15 to 24 age group who were jobless.

"We saw in July that those who graduated from college or K-12 entered the labor market, but some of them could not find jobs," Mapa said.

He said the 15 to 24 age group accounted for 43 percent or 1.02 million of those unemployed in July.

In July 2023, the same age group represented 37.1 percent or 850,000 of the total unemployment figure.

Mapa also cited the impact of unfavorable weather conditions on demand for jobs as a reason for the higher unemployment rate.