PH Employment Rate to Increase as Economy Reopens

Employment rate in the Philippines is seen to rise as the reopening of the economy and the increase in infrastructure expenditures continues, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The country’s unemployment rate plunged from 8.8 percent in February 2021 to a better number of 7.1 percent last March 2021, a stark decline of 1.7 percent that marked the first time the unemployment rate went down to such number since the implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) back in March of 2020.

While Metro Manila fell into a slump as the Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ) was implemented in the region amid a sharp spike in COVID-19 cases, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort said that the impact of the MECQ will not be as drastic as the ECQ of 2020.

“Thus, further reopening of the economy from lockdowns would provide a more structural and sustainable solution in terms of increased production, sales, incomes/livelihood that also create/entail more employment/jobs and more working hours,” Ricafort said, via PNA.

Moreover, other policies intended to help the economy such as the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act will act as catalysts that will boost the economy as the pandemic rages on. Along with low interest rates of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), and the lending that Small Business (SB) Corp. is offering will be able to entice more investments.

But even with the lockdowns, Ricafort said higher government spending on infrastructure is expected to support employment. (GFB)