More than 500K Pinoys lost jobs in 2017

More than 500,000 Filipinos lost their jobs in 2017, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed, but the number did not include discouraged workers or individuals who are no longer looking for jobs as they could not find one, according to Ibon Foundation.

“Nitong 2017, nakaranas ang Pilipinas ng malaking pagbagsak sa bilang ng trabaho since 1997 na Asia Financial Crisis. Nung 2017, nabawasan ng 663,000 na trabaho sa Pilipinas. So ‘yung employed na Pilipino from  41 million to halos 40.3 million na lamang,” Sonny Africa, executive director of Ibon Foundation, said in a report on GMA News’ “Balitanghali.”

The PSA reported earlier that the unemployment rate settled at 5.0 percent in October 2017.

Meanwhile, data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) showed that 4,694 Filipinos were leaving the country each day in January to September 2017 to look for jobs abroad.

In a recent survey by jobs portal JobStreet.com, employers are confident that the job market will grow in 2018.

Jobseekers also remain optimistic about employment prospects, but they are also concerned about greater competition and tougher requirements in their respective industries. —Anna Felicia Bajo/VDS, GMA News