Unemployment Rises in June Survey

Some 13.5 million Filipinos were jobless last June, higher by 1.3 million from the results of the May survey

By Social Weather Stations

The national Social Weather Survey of June 23-26, 2021, found adult joblessness at 27.6% of the adult labor force.

This is 1.8 points above the 25.8% in May 2021 and 10.1 points above the pre-pandemic level of 17.5% in December 2019 [Chart 1, Table 1].

The estimated numbers of jobless are 13.5 million in June 2021 and 12.2 million in May 2021.

SWS defines the Labor Force as adults (18 years and above) presently with a job plus those looking for a job. The Labor Force Participation Rate is the proportion of adults in the labor force.

The June 2021 survey found the Labor Force Participation Rate at 69.1%, or an estimated 48.9 million. It was 67.0%, or an estimated 47.5 million, in May 2021.

The jobless consist of those who (a) voluntarily left their old jobs, (b) are seeking jobs for the first time, or (c) lost their jobs due to economic circumstances beyond their control.

Joblessness reached a catastrophic level of 45.5% in July 2020. It eased to 39.5% in September 2020, 27.3% in November 2020, and 25.8% in May 2021 before rising to 27.6% in June 2021.

The average joblessness rate for 2020 was a record-high 37.4%, surpassing the previous record average of 28.8% in 2012. The 2019 average was 19.8%.

Joblessness rises in Metro Manila and Balance Luzon, falls in the Visayas and Mindanao

The 1.8-point rise in the national joblessness rate was due to increases of 10 points in Metro Manila and 7 points in Balance Luzon, combined with decreases of 8 points in the Visayas and 4 points in Mindanao [Chart 2, Table 2].

Joblessness rose in Metro Manila from 30.8% in May 2021 to 40.9% in June 2021.

It also rose in Balance Luzon, from 24.2% in May 2021 to 30.9% in June 2021.

However, it fell in the Visayas, from 28.7% in May 2021 to 21.3% in June 2021.

It also fell in Mindanao, from 23.0% in May 2021 to 19.2% in June 2021.

Joblessness rises among women

Joblessness rose among women, from 29.0% in May 2021 to 38.3% in June 2021 [Chart 3, Table 3].

However, it fell among men, from 23.6% in May 2021 to 19.8% in June 2021.

This brings the women-men joblessness gap to 18 points, up from 5 points in May 2021.

Joblessness falls but stays highest among the 18-24-year-olds

Joblessness fell among the 18-to-24-year-olds, from 55.5% in May 2021 to 49.3% in June 2021 [Chart 4, Table 4].

It rose among the 25-to-34-year-olds, from 24.6% in May 2021 to 31.0% in June 2021.

It fell slightly among the 35-to-44-year-olds, from 25.6% in May 2021 to 23.8% in June 2021.

It rose among those 45 years old and above, from 18.2% in May 2021.

As in past surveys, the joblessness rate remains highest among the 18-24-year-olds among all age groups.

Joblessness rises slightly in both urban and rural areas

Joblessness rose slightly in urban areas, from 28.0% in May 2021 to 30.7% in June 2021 [Chart 5, Table 5].

It also rose slightly in rural areas, from 23.3% in May 2021 to 25.3% in June 2021.

Joblessness hardly varies by locale, with the urban-rural joblessness gap reaching double-digit in only 9 out of 110 surveys since September 1993.

Joblessness rises among non-elementary graduates and elementary graduates

Joblessness rose among non-elementary graduates, from 11.7% in May 2021 to 15.9% in June 2021 [Chart 6, Table 6].

It also rose among elementary graduates, from 21.6% in May 2021 to 31.5% in June 2021.

It hardly changed among junior high school graduates, barely moving from 30.0% in May 2021 to 28.7% in June 2021.

It fell among college graduates, from 29.7% in May 2021 to 23.8% in June 2021.

The June 2021 joblessness scores across educational levels are still higher than the December 2019 pre-pandemic levels.

Survey background

The Second Quarter 2021 Social Weather Survey was conducted from June 23-26, 2021, using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults (18 years old and above) nationwide: 300 each in Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. The sampling error margins are ±3% for national percentages and ±6% for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao.

The area estimates were weighted by the Philippine Statistics Authority medium-population projections for 2021 to obtain the national estimates.

The survey items reported here were non-commissioned. They were included on SWS’s initiative and released as a public service.

The exact questions were:

Job status. Kayo po ba ay may trabaho sa kasalukuyan, walang trabaho ngayon pero mayroon dati, o hindi pa nagkaroon ng trabaho kahit minsan? [Do you have a job at present, not have a job at present but used to have a job, or never had a job?]

Whether looking for a job or not. IF NO JOB: Kayo po ba ay naghahanap ng trabaho o nagbabalak magtayo ng negosyo, o hindi? OO o HINDI [Are you looking for a job or planning to establish a business or not? YES or NO]

SWS employs its own staff for questionnaire design, sampling, fieldwork, data processing, and analysis, and does not outsource any of its survey operations. The report was prepared by Leo S. Laroza.

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