The number of jobless Filipinos soared to a whopping 3.09 million or 7.5 percent—the highest unemployment rate recorded in three years. The Labor Force Survey of the National Statistics Office also revealed that the number of employed Filipinos went down to 37.819 million in April 2013 compared to the 37.840 million during the same period last year. The slump is said to have been caused by the decline of employment in the agriculture sector.
It was college graduation season last quarter so it was kind of expected that the unemployment rate would rise. It is a fact that not all fresh graduates immediately look for a job or get employed right away.
Nonetheless, the drop in the employment rate tells us that the present administration has failed in its job generation promises. As it affects most heavily the agriculture sector, this downturn may as well be attributed to the government’s lack of support for this very important industry that has served as the primary means of survival for our kababayan in the countryside for the longest time.
—GILBERT ASTUDILLO,
gilastud@gmail.com