Unemployment hits record high in last 3 months – SWS survey

MANILA, Philippines – Unemployment among adult Filipinos reached a new record high of 34.2 percent in the last three months, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) reported yesterday.

The First Quarter 2009 Social Weather Survey, fielded over Feb. 20 to 23, found unemployment rising to 34.2 percent or about 14 million Filipino adults, from 27.9 percent or estimated 11 million from the previous quarter.

But the non-commissioned survey also found that of those unemployed, 13 percent voluntarily left their old jobs, while 12 percent were retrenched, consisting of nine percent who were laid off and three percent whose previous contracts were not renewed.

The SWS data on unemployment refer to the population of adults in the labor force.

“This is because respondents in the standard SWS surveys are those at least 18 years old,” it said.

SWS said unemployment in its surveys has been 20 percent and above since May 2005, except for December 2007 when it was 17.5 percent.

In the SWS data series, which began in 1993, unemployment was below 15 percent until March 2004, and then ranged from 16.5 percent to 19 percent from August 2004 to March 2005, the survey institute said.

“Over the past four quarters, adult unemployment is dominated by those who voluntarily left their old work, and those who were retrenched – either by getting laid off or by not having their contracts renewed,” the SWS said.

The survey showed that in the February survey, 13 percent of the unemployed left their old jobs voluntarily, nine percent were laid off, three percent had their contracts finished and not renewed, and three percent said their employers closed operation. Six percent never worked before at the time of the survey.

The 1993-2008 figures are consistently based on the traditional definition of unemployment as not working and at the same time looking for work. Those not working but not looking for work are excluded from the labor force; these are housewives, retired, disabled, students, etc., it said.

On the other hand, the official lower boundary of the labor force has always been 15 years of age. Formerly, the official definition of unemployment was not working and looking for work, the SWS said.

However, from April 2005 onward, the new official definition has included the concept of availability for work; it subtracts those not available for work, even though looking for work, and adds those available for work but not seeking work for the following reasons: tired/believe no work is available, awaiting results of a job application, temporarily ill/disabled, bad weather, and waiting for rehire/job recall, it said.

“If the official definition is applied, the unemployment rate among adults 18 years old is 25.9 percent in the SWS February 2009 survey. It is lower than when computed using the traditional definition because the correction for those looking for work but ‘not truly available’ is much larger than the correction for those ‘actually available’ though not looking for work at the moment,” the SWS explained.

The survey used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults in Metro Manila, the balance of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

It has sampling error margins of ±2.5 percent for national percentages and ±6 percent for area percentages.

Survey not accurate – Palace

Malacañang however disputed the results of the survey, saying this was based on perceptions and as such does not paint an accurate picture.

Press Secretary Cerge Remonde cited the Labor Force Survey conducted by the Department of Labor and Employment, which he said was wider in scope and thus more accurate and official.

“I conferred with the Department of Labor and Employment and its reaction is that the SWS survey is not as accurate as the Labor Force Survey,” Remonde said.

“The Labor Force Survey uses internationally accepted standards, has much wider reach and is really based more on reality rather than perception,” he added.

However, Remonde said that the surveys, though disputed, are still being used by the government as a guide on finding ways to provide better services to the people.

“The perception of growing joblessness validates further the correctness of approach the President is giving to job creation and it should encourage the government to pursue job generation and creation both here and abroad with greater ardor,” Remonde said.

Based on the Labor Force Survey for January this year, the unemployment rate was pegged at just 7.7 percent. –Helen Flores with Marvin Sy, Philippine Star