Employment Rate is Estimated at 92.5 Percent in April 2013

The results of the April 2013 Labor Force Survey (LFS) revealed an employment rate of 92.5 percent. In the same month of the previous year, that is April 2012, the employment rate was estimated at 93.1 percent. The drop in the employment rate is due to the decline in employment in the agriculture sector, with the number of agricultural workers falling from an estimated 12.468 million in April 2012 to 11.844 million in April 2013, or by about 624 thousand workers (Table 1).

Employment Situation in April 2012 (Final Results)

The number of persons in the labor force, or those who are either employed or unemployed, was estimated at 40.6 million out of the estimated 62.8 million population 15 years old and over in April 2012. This translates into a labor force participation rate (LFPR) of 64.7 percent, slightly higher compared to last year’s figure of 64.2 percent. Majority of the regions reported an LFPR higher than the national rate. The highest participation rate was reported in Northern Mindanao where 71.1 percent of the region’s working age population was in the labor force followed by MIMAROPA with 70.1 percent and Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) with 69.0 percent. The lowest LFPR reported was in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) at 55.9 percent (Table 1).

Employment Rate in January 2013 is Estimated at 92.9 Percent (Results from the January 2013 Labor Force Survey)

The results of the January 2013 Labor Force Survey (LFS) revealed that there were approximately 37.94 million employed persons in January 2013. This figure translates to an employment rate of 92.9 percent, which is similar to the employment rate reported in January 2012 (92.8%). Among the regions, Cagayan Valley (96.7%), and Zamboanga Peninsula (96.6%) had the highest employment rate. The National Capital Region (NCR) recorded the lowest employment rate at 90.5 percent.

Employment Rate is Estimated at 93.2 Percent in October 2012 Results from the October 2012 Labor Force Survey (LFS)

The October 2012 Labor Force Survey (LFS) results recorded an estimate of 37.7 million employed persons, which gives an employment rate of 93.2 percent. Last year’s employment rate was estimated at 93.6 percent. Across regions, Cagayan Valley reported the highest employment rate of 97.6 percent, next is Zamboanga Peninsula with 96.6 percent. National Capital Region (NCR) posted the lowest employment rate of 89.0 percent.

Informal sector operators counted at 10.5 million (Results from the 2008 Informal Sector Survey)

There were about 10.5 million informal sector operators identified in the 2008 Informal Sector Survey (2008 ISS) of the Philippines. This nationwide survey was conducted by the National Statistics Office with funding assistance provided by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP).

National Statistics Office

Labor and Employment