Phl, emerging Asia face shortage of skilled labor

The Philippines and other emerging Asian economies are facing a shortage of skilled labor supply as demand across the region increases, a new report by the Workforce Analytics Institute showed.

The Philippines were identified alongside China, India, and Indonesia as countries which are confronted with a shortage in highly skilled labor.

For the country, the study titled “Deciphering Labor and Skill Shortages in Asia with Workforce Analytics” cited high migration rate as top contributor to its skilled labor scarcity.

“Thus, organizations seeking to address their talent needs may try to expand their talent sources by attracting migrant workers returning from overseas and local workers considering migration,” it said.

The report, however, noted that the Philippines is relatively better prepared and is moving in the right direction to address their skill challenges as compared to other emerging economies which remain to have weak skill preparedness and will likely experience challenges in the coming years.

“Over the next decade, the workingage population of the Philippines will continue to grow, and its current position on the skill momentum index suggests that the country will be able to effectively deal with upcoming skill and talent challenges,” the study said.

Despite the availability of large working-age populations, the report revealed less-than-adequate skills-based education and changing workforce demographics across emerging Asian economies are fueling the threat of a “severe lack” of supply of skilled labor.