Q1 joblessness found worst in a year

THE NUMBER of adults who found themselves without jobs swelled by nearly two million in the first quarter, according to a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey that showed that while the rate relatively steadied from 2015’s final three months, it was still the highest in about a year.

The First Quarter 2016 Social Weather Survey, conducted last March 30-April 2 via face-to-face interviews with 1,500 adults nationwide — and with sampling error margins of ±3 points — also showed that net optimism on job availability 12 months ahead dropped but remained “high.”

The first-quarter survey found joblessness rate at 23.9% (or an estimated 11.0 million adults), 2.5 points more than the 21.4% (9.1 million adults) in the December 2015 survey and the highest since December 2014’s 27.0%.

“SWS’ adult joblessness data refer to the population of adults in the labor force. Those who have a job at present, plus those without a job at present and looking for a job, are part of the labor force,” the survey group said in a statement summarizing results.

The April 2016 adult joblessness rate consisted of 12.8% (or an estimated 5.9 million adults) who voluntarily left their jobs, 7.2%

( 3.3 million adults) who involuntarily lost their jobs and 3.8% (est. 1.8 million adults) who were first-time job seekers.

The proportion of those who resigned or left their jobs voluntarily rose 3.1 points from 9.6% in December, those retrenched fell by 0.9 of a point from 8.0% (April’s 7.2% who were retrenched consisted of 5.6% whose contracts were not renewed, 1.0% who were laid off, and 0.6% whose employers closed shop), while the proportion of first-time job seekers edged up 0.2 of a point from 3.6%.

KEY PROBLEM

Sought for comment, Alan A. Tanjusay — Policy Advocacy officer of the Associated Labor Unions and spokesman of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines — the country’s biggest labor group — replied via text: “The high rate of joblessness covering the said period is a reflection of how rampant is the contractualization practice in the country where there is high and quick turnover rates because of low pay, inadequate social protection benefits and unattractive welfare benefits.”

“This phenomenon is prominent in the previous Aquino administration’s lack of new quality job- creating investments in his six-year regime. Since (President Benigno S. C.) Aquino (III) failed to attract these needed new investments, contractualization is rampant, thus, a high rate of joblessness.”

Job-generating foreign direct investment ( FDI) flows to the Philippines have constantly been less than those that went to most of its peers in Southeast Asia.

The Philippines got $5.724 billion in net FDI inflows last year, slightly less than the downwardrevised $5.74 billion recorded in 2014 and below the central bank’s $6-billion target for last year.

In comparison, Malaysia received $10.963 billion; Vietnam got $ 11.8 billion; Indonesia, $19.213 billion; while $65.328 billion went to Singapore.

Only Thailand fared worse — $ 4.8 billion — the first time in years that it got less than the Philippines.

Business groups and analysts have constantly blamed foreign ownership restrictions in land and strategic industries that are enshrined in the Constitution as a key hurdle for foreign investors.

The Aquino administration had constantly opposed moves in the 16th Congress to ease these restrictions, but the government of Pres. Rodrigo R. Duterte that took office on Thursday last week has signaled readiness to do so as part of an overall thrust to make sure economic growth lifts more Filipinos out of poverty, partly by generating secure jobs. Consequently, the past few days have seen such moves snowballing in the 17th Congress ( Read related story on S1/4).

OPTIMISM FALLS BUT STILL ‘HIGH’

The same survey also found 39% of respondents saying they expected the number of available jobs in the next 12 months to increase, 31% saying it will not change, and 15% saying it will decrease.

That yielded a net optimism on job availability score of +23 (% more jobs minus % fewer jobs), classified by SWS as “high.” This was a six-point drop from December 2015’s “high” +29.

The SWS classifies net optimism on job availability score of at least +30 as “very high”; +20 to +29, “high”; +10 to +19, “fair”; +1 to +9, “mediocre”; -9 to zero, “low”; as well as -10 and down as “very low.” — with