As agriculture, construction add jobs
MANILA, Philippines — The country’s unemployment level declined in August from the previous month as more jobs were created in the agriculture sector, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
National Statistician Dennis Mapa said in a press conference yesterday that preliminary results of the PSA’s Labor Force Survey showed the unemployment rate declined to 5.3 percent in August from six percent in July.
However, the August jobless rate remained higher than the 3.9 percent recorded in the same month last year.
This translated to 2.77 million unemployed Filipinos in August, down from 3.14 million in the previous month, but higher than the 2.03 million posted in August 2025.
Meanwhile, the employment rate rose to 94.7 percent in August from the previous month’s 94 percent, but was down from 96.1 percent in the same month last year.
This is equivalent to 49.79 million employed Filipinos in August, up from 49.21 million in the previous month, but down from 50.1 million in August 2025.
The underemployment rate also slid to 11.9 percent in August from the previous month’s 12.9 percent, but went up from 10.7 percent in August 2025.
There were 5.9 million underemployed Filipinos or those who want additional work hours or an additional job in August, lower than the 6.33 million underemployed in July.
Meanwhile, the labor force participation rate was recorded at 64 percent in August, up from 63.6 percent in the previous month, but down from 65.1 percent in August last year.
Mapa attributed the lower unemployment in August from the previous month to the increase in jobs in certain sectors including agriculture.
The agriculture and forestry sector posted the largest month-on-month increase in jobs in August as it added 847,000 jobs.
Other sectors with large month-on-month increases in employment in August are construction (390,000), wholesale and retail trade (227,000), other service activities (100,000) and education (68,000).
On the other hand, the biggest month-on-month drop in employment in August was posted in public administration and defense (278,000), manufacturing (264,000), administrative and support service activities (114,000), information and communication (103,000), and fishing and aquaculture (100,000).
Chinabank Research said in a commentary that the labor market also improved in August from the previous month as fresh graduates who joined the labor force were partly absorbed.
However, it said that labor market conditions remain weaker than a year ago.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. chief economist Michael Ricafort said the year-on-year increase in unemployment could be attributed to the slower economic growth largely due to the Middle East conflict and the government’s slower infrastructure spending amid flood control corruption issues.
“Going forward, catch up spending by the national government, especially on infrastructure could help pump-prime the economy, create more jobs or employment and other business or economic opportunities,” Ricafort said.
With several regions still in the process of reviewing their minimum wage rates, Chinabank Research said the succeeding wage hikes should strike a balance between helping workers cope with the higher cost of living and limiting cost pressures on businesses.
“While higher wages can support household purchasing power, larger increases could also raise labor costs and prompt businesses to adjust employment or hours worked, potentially limiting the overall boost to workers’ income,” it said.
Mapa said the El Niño, as seen in the past, could impact employment particularly in the agriculture and forestry sector.
Mapa said those in the agriculture sector normally shift to other sectors such as construction and retail trade during the El Niño episodes in the past.
He said the possible shift this time would depend on labor demand in those sectors.
Given the upcoming holiday season, he also said that the country is expected to see an increase in employment in the current quarter.
He said that economic activities typically increase close to the Christmas season, which leads to the need for more workers particularly in the retail sector.
“We are seeing this in the previous years particularly when we are in November, December and we should be expecting the same for 2026,” Mapa said.