Research group says 1.5-M young Filipinos unemployed last year

A research firm shows a big concern on the employment of Filipinos, particularly the youth, which are the most affected segment of the population by the global financial crisis and availability of jobs.

According to the 2011 Philippine Labor Force Survey, 1.5 million young people, aged 15 to 24 were unemployed.

On average, young people are more likely to be unemployed than adults. The situation was further aggravated by the global financial crisis.

Globally, 74.8 million youth aged 15-24 were unemployed in 2011, an increase of more than 4 million since 2007.

Global research organization Teens Research Unlimited (TRU), a company under Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS), recently released a study “The TRU Study: 2012 Philippines Edition” which said that companies that are able to understand and connect with Filipino teens and young adults are the most successful brands for these market segments.

TNS is a global consultancy on growth strategy and new market entry firm and a member of insight, information and consultancy firm Kantar.

Abigail Barcelona, TNS Philippines associate research director, said the TRU study showed there are over 15 million Filipino teens and approximately 9 million young adults in early 20s, or 16 percent and 9 percent of the total population, respectively.

“This is a highly valuable sector (because) they need to be navigated precisely,” she said.

Asian young adults, particularly the Filipino youth, are a very dynamic market in terms of economy as this segment is growing fast alongside economy.

Barcelona said the study showed that the Filipino youth are more immersed in the digital universe this year, increasing from 45 percent to 58 percent.

Under the young adults, around 36 percent of today’s young adults are currently employed, of which 22 percent are employed full-time and 14 percent are employed part-time, while 64 percent are unemployed.

For his part, Lawrence Jeff Johnson, International Labor Organization (ILO) Philippine director, noted various concerns affecting Filipino youth.

“For some youth, the challenge of finding employment can be daunting. Those who are not able to transition into decent and productive work can be overcome by a sense of frustration and negativity during a time that is meant to be full of hope,” he said.

However, even among those Filipino youth who were employed, 2.3 million were in vulnerable forms of employment in 2010. “This is of equal or greater concern as they are often left with little choice but to accept or create whatever work they can find, just so they and their loved ones can survive,” Johnson said.

Vulnerable employment, he said, is often characterized by inadequate earnings, poor workingconditions, lack of social protection such as social security or health insurance, and social dialog.

With this alarming situation, online job portal Jobstreet.com recently launched its mobile application on major platforms which include iTunes, Android and RIM for Blackberry, to give better opportunities to Filipino fresh graduates and jobseekers to land on a job as young adults are more immersed in technological advancements like the Internet and smartphones.

According to its study, Jobstreet.com said the country has an estimated total of 10.2 million jobseekers this year, of which majority are youth aged 20 to 24 and part of which are around 480,000 graduates these April and May.

However, there are only 2 million job openings available, of which 40 percent are found in their website.

In a digital age, job application process evolved to require less physical effort and jobseekers can either immediately apply through online job portals or send e-mails directly to company websites. And according to its recent survey, Jobstreet.com has noted that most applicants resort to online sources to seek employment. –Danessa O. Rivera, Daily Tribune