The views expressed in this paper are the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the

views
or policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), or its Board of Governors, or the governments they
represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this paper and accepts no
responsibility for any consequence of their use. The countries listed in this paper do not imply any view
on ADB's part as to sovereignty or independent status or necessarily conform to ADB's terminology.

P H I L I P P I N ES

making every young

Juan and Maria

job ready

R U T H R . RO D R I G U E Z

Division Chief, Bureau Employment of Local Employment

Department of Labor and Employment

Republic of the Philippines

EMPLOYMENT SCENARIO
Key Employment Indicators, 2010-2014, Q1 2015
INDICATOR

2010

Household Population
(15 years old and over)
Labor Force (000)
Employed Persons (000)
Unemployed Persons (000)
Underemployed Persons (000)
Labor Participation Rate (%)
Employment Rate (%)
Unemployment Rate (%)
Underemployment Rate (%)
Youth Unemployment Rate(%)

60,717
38,893
36,035
2,859
6,762
64.1
92.0
8.0
18.8
17.6

2014*

2012

2013*

61,882

62,985

61,176

62,189

Q1
2015*P
Q1
61777 62,870

40,006
37,192
2,814
7,163
64.6
92.8
7.2
19.3
16.3

40,426
37,600
2,826
7,514
64.2
93.1
7.0
20.0
16.2

39,088
36,286
2,801
6,912
63.9
92.8
7.2
19.0
16.1

40,050
37,310
2,740
6,870
64.4
93.2
6.8
18.4
15.8

39387
36418
2969
7103
63.8
92.5
7.5
19.5
17.3

2011

AVE. P

40,090
37,455
2,635
6,548
63.8
93.4
6.6
17.5
15.0

Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, averages of four (4) rounds of 2010-2014, and January 2014-2015 Labor Force Surveys (LFS)
* Estimates exclude figures for Region 8.
P - Preliminary

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

EMPLOYMENT SCENARIO
JANUARY 2015 LFS:

Youth comprises half of the

unemployed population

47.3%
or 1.246 M

48.8 %
or 1.287 M

(vs. 48.2% or 1.432 M in January 2014)

(vs. 47.3% or 1.404 M in January 2014)

YEARS OLD

YEARS OLD

15-24

25-54

Source: January 2015 Labor Force Survey Results, Institute for Labor Studies
*Excludes figure for Region VIII or Eastern Visayas.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

EMPLOYMENT SCENARIO
JANUARY 2015 LFS:

WORKING AGE POPULATION

(62.870 M)
Female
50%
(31.53M)

Male
50%
(31.34M)

LABOR FORCE
(40.09M)
Female
39%
(15.69M)

Male
61%
(24.39M)

LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION RATE

Total: 63.8%
Male: 77.8%
Source: January 2015 Labor Force Survey Results, Institute for Labor Studies
Female: 49.8%
*Excludes figure for Region VIII or Eastern Visayas.
4

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

EMPLOYMENT SCENARIO
JANUARY 2015 LFS:

EMPLOYMENT
(37.45M)
Female
39.52%
(14.80M)

Male
60.47%
(22.65M)

UNEMPLOYMENT
(2.63M)
Female
34.0%
(0.89M)

Male
66.0%
(1.74M)

Source: January 2015 Labor Force Survey Results, Institute for Labor Studies
*Excludes figure for Region VIII or Eastern Visayas.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

EMPLOYMENT SCENARIO
JANUARY 2015 LFS:

Significant reduction in unemployment rate levels

was seen across key demographics

5.7%
(0.89M)
(vs. 6.9% or 1.07 M in Jan 2014)

7.1%
1.74M
(vs. 7.9% or 1.90 M in Jan2014)

Source: January 2015 Labor Force Survey Results, Institute for Labor Studies
*Excludes figure for Region VIII or Eastern Visayas.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

SCHOOL-TO-WORK
TRANSITION
The school-to-work
transition for many
young Filipinos is
associated with
change, waiting,
and uncertainty.

It takes a high school leaver up to 3 years

to find a first job and 4 years to find a
permanent wage job.

It takes a college graduate 1 year to find

a first job and up to 2 years to find a
permanent job.

The youths educational attainment, age, behavior towards job searching, his family, social
network, minimum wage, regulations and restrictions on employment arrangements are as
strong factors influencing their school-to-work transition
Source: Bird, K. 2012. Are Filipino Youth off to a Good Start?
Youth Labor Market Experience in the Philippines. ADB. Manila.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

SCHOOL-TO-WORK
TRANSITION
The Filipino youths slow transition from school to
work reduces their chances of finding a good job
because their employability diminishes.
The transition period may include the following:
Job search behavior
Short term skills training
Temporary work, household duties
Inactivity staying at home out of employment,
education and training (NEET)
Source: Bird, K. 2012. Are Filipino Youth off to a Good Start?
Youth Labor Market Experience in the Philippines. ADB. Manila.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

YOUTH NEET
About 1 in 4 youth are not in employment, education
and training system at any one time
Prolong periods in NEET can damage youth future
labor market prospects
Women in particular are at risk of becoming NEET
About one in three young women are in NEET at any
one time
Young people from lower income families more at risk
of becoming NEET after finishing education
Philippines NEET Rates are relatively high on an
international comparison Source: Bird, K. 2012. Are Filipino Youth off to a Good Start?
Youth Labor Market Experience in the Philippines. ADB. Manila.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

Republic Act 8759

was enacted in 1999 institutionalizing a
national employment facilitation service
network through the establishment of

Public Employment Service Offices

in every province, key cities and other
strategic areas.

ESTABLISHED PESOs

1,925

INSTITUTIONALIZED PESOs 391

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

Enhancing the
employability of at-risk
youth to improve their
integration into
productive employment.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | PHILIPPINES

THE PARTNERSHIP
DOLE, ADB, and the Government of Canada share the same
goal of inclusive growth:
Employment creation and poverty reduction
Helping young Filipinos get a head start in their careers
DOLE, ADB, and the Government of Canada implements the
JobStart Philippines program:
DOLE as the Executing Agency
PESOs as Implementing Agencies
Employers as our Partners

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

2. Life Skills Training

1. Registration and Client Assessment

7. Referral for Job

Placement (PESO
available vacancies)

(plus one-on-one career guidance)

Prequalifications

Internship
Offers

Signing of
partnership
agreements

Training
Plans

3.

Job-Matching

4. Referral for interviews with

JobStart Employers

6. Work Experience
(up to 3 months)

5b. Technical Training

Job Ready?

(up to 3 months)

5c. Other DOLE youth

employment/training programs

5d. Further CG and job

NO

YES
5a. Wage Employment

matching

THE EMPLOYMENT
FACILITATION FULL CYCLE
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

JobStart Client Tracking System

(Data as of 18 May 2015)
REGISTRANTS 5,412
MALE 2,354
FEMALE
3,058
PRESELECTED PARTICIPANTS 4,339 (random, public draw)
MALE 1,895
FEMALE
2,444

SELECTED PARTICIPANTS 1,820 (computerized, match pair)

MALE 845
FEMALE
975
LIFE SKILLS TRAINING GRADUATES 1,415
MALE 642
FEMALE
763
TECHNICAL SKILLS TRAINING AND INTERNSHIPS - 596
MALE
289
FEMALE
307
14

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

JobStart Client Tracking System

(Data as of 18 May 2015)
Internship Positions Dominated by Females Marketing
Staff, Office Staff, Call Center Agent, Cashier, Quality
Controller, Public Area Attendant, Store Supervisor
Internship Positions Dominated by Males Janitor,
Computer Maintenance Technician, Production Worker
(Bakery), Printing Machine Operator, Decorative Painter,
Lay-out Artist, Warehouse Personnel
Gender Neutral Housekeeping Attendant, Hotel Service
Crew, Welder and Flame cutter, Production Endline Crew
(Fast food and Manufacturing), Gaming Assistant,
F&B Attendant
15

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

Benefits of JobStart Philippines

(ADB Mid-term Review, November 2014)
Employers reported satisfied with JobStart
o Better prepared job applicants through life skills
training
o Flexibility provided to employers in developing the
training plans
JobStart beneficiaries reported satisfied with JobStart
o Improved confidence through life skills training
o Technical training and work experience provides
relevant skills to land a job
o Improved chances of finding a job
16

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

HOW DID JOBSTART CONSIDER GENDER IN

PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION AND MONITORING?
JobStart targets youth NEET, both men and women
Pre-selection and selection process of pilot program
participants was gender proportionate
Client Tracking System monitors transactions and
records statistics/data sets by gender
Internship positions in the service industry mostly
occupied by female JobStarters
Impact evaluation tracer study to determine
employment outcomes of both male and female

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

For an undereducated or
under-skilled, a young
single mother like me, good
thing I have gotten greater
chances of securing a
decent job!

I got promoted after my

internship! I now earn a
little higher than before
which I save for the repair
of our home.

I learned to serve honestly

and with integrity my
obligations not only at work,
buy for my family and my
fellows as well.

Timid at first, my exposure

to first-hand work experience
helped boost my selfconfidence. Now, I enjoy
working in a team.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT | REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

THANK YOU!

w w w. d o l e . g o v. p h
w w w. b l e . d o l e . g o v. p h
w w w. p h i l - j o b. n e t