THE Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has recorded a decrease in the number of Filipinos who are members of the labor force in July 2025 at 60.7 percent, the lowest since 2020.
In a report issued Wednesday, September 10, 2025, the PSA said as of July 2025, a total of 48.64 million Filipinos aged 15 and above were part of the labor force.
In June 2025, the labor force participation rate (LFPR) was 65.7 percent, while in July 2024 it was 63.5 percent. For April 2025, the LFPR was 63.7 percent.
Of the 48.64 million, 2.59 million, or 5.3 percent, were jobless. This was higher than the number of unemployed individuals in July last year at 2.38 million, and in April 2025 at 2.06 million.
This unemployment rate is the highest since 2020.
The number of employed Filipinos also went down to 46.05 million, or 94.7 percent, from 47.68 million in July 2024 and 48.67 million in April 2025.
Underemployment, or workers who express the desire to have additional hours in their present job, take on an additional job, or have a new job with longer hours, rose to 14.8 percent, the highest year-on-year since 2021.
In a press conference, National Statistician and Civil Registrar General Undersecretary Dennis Mapa said the decline in the LFPR was primarily driven by bad weather conditions experienced in various parts of the country.
“Una talaga, ang nangyari dito sa July, first tinamaan ang ating bansa, maraming areas, ng typhoon. Ito talaga ang nakita namin na main reason,” Mapa said.
(What really happened in July was that our country, many areas, was first hit by a typhoon. This, we saw, was the main reason.)
“Kung nakikita ninyo, doon sa mga sectors na medyo sensitive sa weather, ang may pagbaba gaya ng agriculture, construction, fishing, and in a way, retail trade. Doon may impact, kaya siguro ang karamihan hindi na nag-participate because of the weather condition,” he added.
(As you can see, the sectors that are quite sensitive to weather, such as agriculture, construction, fishing, and, in a way, retail trade, showed declines. Those were the areas impacted, which is likely why many did not participate because of the weather conditions.)
Mapa said they also recorded a substantial number of Filipinos aged 15 to 24 who stopped working, totaling 771,000, due to schooling.
He said there were also almost 800,000 who stopped working due to household family duties.
Mapa said 120,000 reported that no work was available for them during the survey period, while 164,000 were awaiting responses to job applications.
In July 2025, the services sector accounted for the largest share of total employment at 62.8 percent, followed by industry with 18.7 percent, and agriculture at 18.5 percent.
The top three subsectors with the highest employment were wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (19.2 percent), agriculture and forestry (16.0 percent), and construction (10.0 percent).
The agriculture and forestry; wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles; fishing and aquaculture; construction; and accommodation and food service activities sectors recorded the highest annual decreases in the number of employed persons.
In a statement, Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the government is intensifying efforts to enhance climate resilience and improve workforce agility to future-proof the country’s labor market.
Balisacan said that in response to the decline in agricultural employment, government policies must focus on boosting productivity and resilience in the sector through modernized production methods, climate-smart practices, and stronger market linkages.
“This must be complemented by expanded rural infrastructure, improved digital connectivity, and increased access to training opportunities,” Balisacan said.
He also emphasized the importance of reducing the school-to-work transition period and enhancing youth employability by expanding youth employment programs, such as the Government Internship Program, JobStart, and the Special Program for Employment of Students.
“The Marcos administration remains focused on addressing job-skills mismatch and preparing the workforce for the demands of a rapidly evolving economic environment,” Balisacan added. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)