Gov't commits to more quality jobs as employment rate slightly improves - Palace

Malacañang on Tuesday said the government remains committed to creating quality and productive jobs for Filipinos, following the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) latest report on employment among Filipinos.

Citing data presented by Department of Economy, Planning, and Development (DEPDev) Secretary Arsenio Balisacan, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro noted that total employment rose to 48.89 million in April 2026, with the services sector accounting for 62.3% of total employment.

“Kahit medyo nag-increase po ang employment rate, patuloy pa rin po ang ating gobyerno sa paglilikha po ng dekalidad na trabaho at pagbibigay ng mga livelihood projects sa ating mga kababayan,” Castro said in a press conference.

(Even as the employment rate has slightly increased, our government still continues to create quality jobs and provide livelihood projects for our countrymen.)

According to the PSA, some 48.89 million were employed during the month, bringing the employment rate to 95.3%, lower than the 95.9% a year ago, despite the number of employed Filipinos increasing from 48.67 million.

The PSA also reported that there were 2.41 million Filipinos of working age without jobs in April 2026, translating to an unemployment rate of 4.7%. This compares with 2.06 million unemployed Filipinos a year ago, when the unemployment rate was 4.1%.

“Maraming challenges sa ating ekonomiya pero dahil hindi sumusuko ang mga Pilipino at dahil sa patuloy na interventions ng gobyerno tulad ng paglilikha ng dekalidad at produktibong trabaho, panghihikayat sa investments, pagbibigay ng mga livelihood sa mga nawawalan ng trabaho at iyong mga bumalik na mga OFWs, naging maganda po ang resulta. Pero hindi po ito pababayaan,” Castro said.

(There are many challenges in our economy but because the Filipinos do not give up and because of the government's continuous interventions such as creating quality and productive jobs, encouraging investments, providing livelihoods to those who have lost their jobs, and the returning OFWs, the result has been good. But we will not let our guards down.)

She also cited Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Secretary Francis Tolentino, who gave assurances on the continued focus on employment generation, social protection, and improved public services. — JMA, GMA News