The unemployment rate in the Philippines decreased to 3.7% in September 2024 from 4.4% in the same month last year, according to preliminary estimates by the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Compared to August 2024 (4.0%), the unemployment rate fell by 0.3%.

In terms of magnitude, the number of unemployed individuals in September 2024 was posted at 1.89 million. This was lower than the estimated number of unemployed persons of 2.26 million in September 2023 and 2.07 million in August 2024.

Meanwhile, the employment rate in September 2024 increased to 96.3%, from 95.5% in September 2023 and 96.0% in August 2024.

In terms of levels, the number of employed persons in September 2024 was recorded at 49.87 million. This was higher than the number of employed persons of 47.67 million in September 2023 and 49.15 million in August 2024. 

In September 2024, the services sector remained the largest area for employment, accounting for 62.8% of the total 49.87 million employed individuals. Meanwhile, the agriculture sector contributed 19.9%, and the industry sector made up 17.4% of the employment figures.

The country’s labour force participation rate (LFPR) in September 2024 was estimated at 65.7%. This was higher than the estimated LFPR in September 2023, which was 64.1%. In August 2024, the LFPR was estimated at 64.8%.

The reported LFPR in September 2024 translates to 51.77 million Filipinos aged 15 years old and over who were in the labour force or who were either employed or unemployed. The number of individuals aged 15 years old and over in the labour force was 49.93 million in September 2023 and 51.22 million in August 2024.

At the same time, the youth LFPR increased to 33.9%, from 33.1% reported in September 2023 and 33.2% in August 2024. Youth employment rate increased to 90.0%, from 86.9% in September 2023 and 88.0% in August 2024.

On average, employed persons worked 40.3 hours per week. This was lower than the average hours worked in a week in September 2023 at 40.8 hours and in August 2024 at 40.7 hours per week. 

Among wage and salary workers, those employed in private establishments remained the highest share at 76.6% of the wage and salary workers or 49.0% of the total number of employed persons during the period. This was followed by those employed in government or government-controlled corporations with a share of 14.9% of the wage and salary workers or 9.5% of the total number of employed persons. 

Further data showed that the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) annual growth rate for the second quarter of 2024 was revised upward to 6.4% from the preliminary estimate of 6.3% at constant 2018 prices. Major contributors to the upward revision were Manufacturing, from 3.6% to 3.9%; accommodation and food service activities, from 10.4% to 12.1%; and real estate and ownership of dwellings, from 7.2% to 7.6%.