Rising number of underemployed Filipinos alarms Villanueva
(FILE) Sen. Joel Villanueva urges the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to continue implementing the National Emergency Recovery Strategy (NERS) even beyond the Duterte administration to ensure continued job creation in the country. (Bibo Nueva España/Senate PRIB)
MANILA, Philippines – Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva on Friday expressed concern about the increasing number of underemployed Filipinos.
A recent Philippine Statistics Authority report showed that the number of underemployed Filipinos in July 2022 was higher at 6.54 million compared to the estimated 5.89 million just a month earlier.
“The July 2022 unemployment rate which dropped to 5.2%, from 6.0% in June 2022 is a positive sign, but the rise in the actual number of underemployed Filipinos remains concerning,” Villanueva, former chairperson of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment, and Human Resource Development, said in a statement.
“We still face a precarious job situation which requires aggressive intervention. We need jobs that are secure and pay decently, not temporary, informal, and insecure, especially amidst the rising prices due to inflation which clocked in at 6.3% last August,” he added.
Villanueva stressed the importance of passing Senate Bill No. 129 or the “Trabaho Para sa Lahat ng Pilipino Act” which he authored.
Under his proposed measure, a National Employment Recovery Strategy will be institutionalized to strengthen job generation with the help of local government units.
“Right before us is the 2023 national budget that we will thoroughly scrutinize to ensure it will fuel economic activities to create jobs and services,” he said.
“We will see to it that relevant education and training are funded to arm future workers in landing in sustainable employment or livelihood,” the senator added.
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Specifically, Villanueva said the budget and the suitable measures would help the economy recover after the COVID-19 pandemic impacted employment and growth.
Villanueva served as director-general of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), tasked with restructuring efforts in promoting and developing middle-level manpower.
For his service at the Tesda, Villanueva was nicknamed “Tesdaman.” – Irish Lorraine Perez INQUIRER.net trainee
