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By APD writer Melo M. Acuna
MANILA, June 13 (APD) – A private research group claimed the recently released labor force survey figures indicate “an alarming intensification of domestic jobs crisis” despite the recovery in agriculture and solid export growth during the first three months of 2017.
The reported gross domestic product was pegged at 6.4% with a decline from 6.6% during the 4th quarter of 2016.
The Philippine Statistics Authority reported a reduction from 6.8% attained during the first quarter of 2016. The reason cited was the slow implementation of big-ticket infrastructure projects.
IBON, a private research group claimed the government’s report said unemployment and underemployment in the country fell along with employment and the labor force size.
The trend indicates “growing distortions rather than improvements in the economy,” IBON said.
The research group said the latest sign of untenability of the government’s “neoliberal economic policies.”
In a statement released today, IBON claimed the government-run Philippine Statistics Authority reported 5.7% unemployment and 16.1% underemployment in April 2017, which were lower than last year’s.
The number of unemployed declined by 182,000 and the number of underemployed by a large 963,000.
“At first glance these appear to be signs of an improving jobs situation,” IBON said.
IBON noted if the PSA-released data are correct, then the reported number of employed Filipinos actually fell by 393,000 to 40.3 million in April 2017 from 40.7 million in the same period the year before.
“Not only did the reported first quarter growth of 6.4% in gross domestic product not create jobs but the economy actually lost jobs since 2016,” the statement added.
The biggest job losses were in the services sector, which shed some 557,000 jobs since last year.
The losses were traced to wholesale and retail trade with 448,000 jobs where 74,000 lost jobs in education with some 65,000 in accommodation and food service activities.
According to IBON, the PSA data are still incomplete though the agriculture sector saw a 125,000 increase in employment (1.2% growth) and manufacturing with 56,000 increase with (1.6% growth) which are far below the reported economic growth.
Describing government claims of favorable unemployment and underemployment figures, IBON said all these are “statistical illusion.”
Labor participation rate fell to 61.4% which is the lowest in 36 years or since the 60.1% recording during the Philippines’ severe economic crisis in 1982 under strongman Ferdinand Marcos.
“The lower labor force participation rate means that the labor force shrunk by 575,000 in April 2017 from the year before despite 1.4 million increase in the population of 15 years old and over,” IBON noticed.
IBON said the country’s chronic poverty and low incomes in the Philippines, this is probably because of the growing numbers of discouraged workers dropping out of the labor force after miserable failing to find jobs.
IBON added there’s a need to drastically reorient economic policies to build domestic agriculture and Filipino manufacturers as main drivers of domestic demand and employment.
“Neoliberal market-driven policies have not and will not develop the Philippine economy,” IBON concluded.
(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)
