The government's priority is to create high-quality and high-paying jobs to address the rising issue of vulnerable employment, particularly among self-employed and unpaid family workers, said the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).

This statement follows the release of the July Labor Force Survey (LFS), with the unemployment rate further easing to 4.8 percent in July from 5.2 percent in the same month last year.

However, the labor force decreased by 3.1 million in July 2023 from last year's period. This brought the labor force participation rate to 60.1 percent, down from 65.2 percent in July 2022. Meanwhile, total employment went down by 2.8 million in July.

The number of underemployed persons in July 2023 was registered at 7.10 million, translating to an underemployment rate of 15.9 percent and equivalent to 562,000 additional underemployed persons. This rate is higher than the 13.8 percent underemployment rate in July 2022.

"The entire government remains committed to improving the business climate in the country to attract more investments, which will lead to the creation of high-quality and high-paying jobs," said NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan.

He also reiterated the importance of fast-tracking the implementation of the FY 2023 budget and the government's infrastructure programs bannered by the 'Build-Better-More' infrastructure flagship projects that aim to strengthen the country's competitiveness and create more job opportunities for workers.

Balisacan expressed the Marcos administration's priority to roll out programs enhancing the skillsets of Filipino employees.

"We will focus on expanding upskilling and retooling programs to improve the country's labor market performance. These are critical to assisting members of the workforce, particularly those in vulnerable employment, to improve their employability and allowing them to move across industries and occupations," he added. NEDA Public Affairs