Job openings stabilize

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ONLINE ADS for Philippine jobs decreased minimally in July from a year ago, implying stability in the business and economic environment.

The Job Availability Index — a statistical measure of monthly job placements at Jobstreet.com with January 2007 as base year — dropped by 0.1%, or 0.2 index point to 279.7 in July, from 279.9 the previous year. July marked the second month that job postings online shrank, mainly dragged by easing demand for manpower in the service sector.

Still, experts remained optimistic.

“The minimal decrease in job postings implies that the upward trend of the business and economic cycle is still stable. I believe that it shows job opportunities are still available,” said Cid L. Terosa, senior economist at the University of Asia and the Pacific.

Jobstreet.com recorded a total of 19,659 in jobs available in July, a bit lower from 19,671 during the same period a year ago.

Job advertisements by service firms, which accounted for 86.5% of total jobs available, fell by 3.8%, the second month in a row. Under this sector are private and government firms, which shed job vacancies at a rate of 9.9% and 27.3%, respectively.

“This period is normally a period where firms don’t hire many new workers. Hence, job advertisements are expected to decrease particularly in the service sector where many jobs are contractual in nature,” said Mr. Terosa.

Job prospects in the service sector continued to be supported by brisk hiring growth in call centers. IT-enabled services and business process outsourcing (BPO) industries increased by 116.4% in July to 6,055 from 2,798 during the same period a year ago.

“One factor affecting growth of the industry [BPO] is the demand in market countries, especially the US but also in other English-speaking countries such as the UK, Australia and New Zealand, and Canada,” said Gillian Joyce G. Virata, executive director for information and research of the Business Processing Association of the Philippines (BPA/P).

“We also export IT-BPO services to Japan and other Asian countries, the Middle East, and other European countries,” Ms. Virata added.

Rene E. Ofreneo, a professor at the University of the Philippines School of Labor and Industrial Relations, said communication companies continue to expand in a “cellphone-mad nation.”

Employment opportunities in the industry sector, which accounted for 12% of total jobs available, increased by 37.9% year on year in July. The manufacturing, electricity, gas and water industries were accountable for the growth in the industry sector.

“The remarkable increase in industry-related job postings is consistent with the better outlook for the industry sector for the rest of the year,” said Mr. Terosa.

Mr. Ofreneo, meanwhile, said that “manufacturing, particularly in the electronics assembly, could be recovering more fully from the 2008-2009 global meltdown.”

“Construction is down but there is tremendous expansion in electricity, gas and water, which is partly related to construction. This can be explained partly by the dissipation of post-election uncertainties affecting energy projects,” added Mr. Ofreneo.

Vacancies in the agriculture sector gained by 11.5% year on year, reversing last year’s slump. Mr. Ofreneo traced the growth partly to favorable weather conditions that bode well for increased output.

“The increase in job postings related to agriculture and industry show that activities in these two sectors are still picking up,” Mr. Terosa said. — D. F. M. Falamig, Businessworld