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Unemployment as a Social Issue in the Philippines

Jhanine S. Siglos

Bachelor of Secondary Education Major in Values Education

Research in Values Education

Professor Gefray A. Cabilan

June 30, 2021

Abstract

This term paper entitled “Unemployment as a Social Issue in the Philippines”, discussed the

unemployment rate in the Philippines. Unemployment in the Philippines became a huge problem

in community and it cause socio-economic impact in our society for over years it is being

studied. There are still no solutions being implemented to this problem and now, it’s still

rampant. This paper aims to discuss and point out existing problems that connects to the social

issue of unemployment. Throughout this paper, it will study the causes and effects of

unemployment in concerns to contemporary studies, theories and articles that pioneering

researchers done. This study seeks theories and approaches that can support and provide

resources to help unemployed people find answer about employability. The goal of this study

was to develop a model that could bring solution to the problem of unemployment in the

Philippines by providing studies and articles that can support the present knowledge and innate

capabilities of workers.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Abstract …………………………………………………………………………….….. 2

I. Introduction ………………………………………………………………………......4

II. Unemployment in the Philippines…………………………………………………….4

III. Causes of Unemployment in the Philippines………………………………………..5

IV. Effects of Unemployment in the Philippines……………………………………….6

V. Ways to Increase Individual’s Employability…………………………………….....7

VI. Conclusion …….…………………………………………………….………..……....9

Reference………………………………………………………………………….....11
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Unemployment as a Social Issue in the Philippines

I. Introduction

The definition of an unemployed person is someone of working age (16 and up), jobless,

able and available to work, and actively looking for a job. Unemployment brings with despair,

unhappiness and anguish. It is practically known that without job, people cannot buy anything

without earning money it means it gives financial stress to people. Blustein (2006) argued that

working developed as a means of organizing the efforts that are needed to ensure access to food,

shelter, clothing, safety, housing, and the other core attributes of surviving. On a broader level,

working has the potential to provide a sense of contributing to the overall social and economic

welfare of a community (Blustein, 2019).

Unemployment is indeed a problem to all Filipinos, for the reason that it will affect their

lifestyle and needs and brings financial stress that may result to reduced income, cause health

problems and emotional challenge.

II. Unemployment in the Philippines

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),

unemployment is a person/s above a specified age not being in paid employment or self-

employment but currently available for work during the reference period. The problem in

unemployment is common not only in the Philippines but also in neighboring country. It will

remain as a dominant issue that the nation is facing. Currently, Philippines unemployment rate

went down to 7.1% in March 2021, translating into 3.44 million Filipinos with no jobs, the

Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said on May 6, 2021. The highest record of unemployment
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rate in the Philippines reaches 14.7% last year on April, the number of unemployed persons rose

by 15.9 million to 23.1 million.

III. Causes of Unemployment in the Philippines

In the world today, there are a few common causes of unemployment. Unemployment in

the Philippines is attributed to reasons including overpopulation, lack of education and

oversupply of labour force on certain industries and the inability to take on available jobs.

Overpopulation is the root of almost all problems in the Philippines and for the country to

progress, it only needs to solve overpopulation and everything else will follow. According to

Labor Force Survey (LFS), the total population of 15 years old and over was estimated at 73.7

million wherein the number of persons who were in the labor force was reported at 41.1 million

in April 2020. This placed the labor forced participation rates (LFPR) at 55.7 percent, which

means that three in every five of the population aged 15 years and over were either employed or

unemployed; this is the lowest in the history of the Philippine labor market. One reason that

unemployment rate in Philippine is high because the job creation has struggled to keep pace with

an ever-expanding population and the number of people entering the job market has been greater

than the number of jobs created (Salvosa, 2015).

Over the past 30 years, unemployment in general and youth unemployment in particular

has been a major problem in many industrial societies (Isengard, 2003). The transition from

school is a rather complex and turbulent period. Many young people have short spells of

unemployment during their transition from school to work; however, some often get trapped in

unemployment and risk becoming unemployed in the long terms. (Kelly et al., 2012)
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In addition, Oversupply of labour force and inability to take on available jobs (structural

unemployment) is also one of the causes of unemployment. Undergraduates are still taking up

college courses that are popular but previously high in demand. After graduation, these graduates

possess skills that are not high in demand in the job market, there is mismatch. In scenario, in

healthcare industry, nurses were previously in demand abroad. Many undergraduates took up

nursing and soon supply matches demand. However, the country’s education system continues to

produce college graduates who have taken up nursing. As supply increases above demand, there

is an oversupply of labour. As a result, these graduated are unemployed.

IV. Effects of Unemployment in the Philippines

Unemployed individuals are susceptible to experience several challenges. Unemployment

impacts society and the economy as a whole. The longer a person is unemployed, the more likely

they are to experience potential negative effects and contribute to the multiplier effect that

unemployment has on the community. Common effects of unemployment include reduced

income, health problems, and mental health challenges.

According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Stastics (BLS), when workers are unemployed,

their families lose wages, and the nation as whole loses their contribution to the economy in

terms of the goods or services that could have been produced. Unemployed workers also lose

their purchasing power, which can lead to unemployment for other workers, creating a cascading

effect that ripples through the economy.

The relationship between unemployment and poor health has been well documented. The

unemployed tend to have higher levels of impaired mental health including depression, anxiety,

and stress, as well as higher levels of mental health hospital admissions, chronic disease
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(cardiovascular disease, hypertension and musculoskeletal disorders) and premature mortality

(Dean and Wilson, 2009).

For more individuals, basic life requirements are met through employment. However,

work does much more than supply the means for meeting physical needs; it also can satisfy

creative urges, promote self-esteem, and provide an avenue for achievement and self-realization

(Linn, Sandifer and Stein, 2011). Jahoda has argued that being employed satisfies a

psychological need, a need which must be filled to maintain good mental health. Because of this

psychological need, a need which is fulfilled by employment, not only are the unemployed at

risk for mental health problems, but also are people who are out of the labor force (OFL). People

who are OLF do not have a paid job and they are not seeking employment (Jahoda, 1984).

V. Ways to Increase Individual’s Employability

Hillage and Pollard (1998) define employability as the capability to move self-

sufficiently within the labor market to realize potential through sustainable employment.

According to these authors the employability of individuals depends on their knowledge, skills

and attitudes. Moreover, they argue that employability is linked to career management skills or

the way in which individuals mobilize, present and update their resources in the context of the

job market. Harvey (2001) continues on the definition of Hillage and Pollard (1998), he defines

individual employability as the propensity of students to obtain a job; adding that distinction

should be made between individual and institutional employability-latter refers to institutional

performance. According to Yorke (2006) the individual’s employability is a set of achievements-

skills, understanding and personal attributes- that makes graduates more likely to gain

employment and be successful in their chosen occupations, which benefits themselves, the
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workforce, the community and the economy. The author’s points out that employability is a

complex concept that depends on the individual’s ability to mix and juggle with generic

achievements and/or those related to a specific context.

In our globally competitive knowledge economy, where change is an everyday reality,

the importance of employability is generally agreed-upon by policy makers and scholars alike

(Peeters et al. 2019). Higher education institutions need to prepare students for jobs that do not

exist yet, for using technologies that have yet to be invented, and for solving problems that

nobody has yet thought of (Kumar, 2007).

The USEM model of Knight and Yorke (2004) is the oldest of the selected frameworks

that had the purpose to make discourse around the notion of employability more scientific. It

proposes a dynamic approach to employability to specifying a list of key skills that evolve along

different phases, ranging from entry into higher education to continuous development in the

workplace. Dacre Pool and Sewell (2007) propose another model called the Key to

Employability, this aim to introduce a model that is directly applicable and accessible to all

stakeholders in higher education.

The first component, Understanding (U) corresponds to the student’s mastery of

his or her subject of study and the ability to transfer that to other contexts. It revolves

around the development of student’s expertise. Expertise includes domain-specific

knowledge, understanding and skills.

The second component, Skills (S) or Skillful Practices, is the procedural

knowledge of the student. This knowledge can be generic or specific. To identify a list of

generic skills Pool and Sewell (2007) refer to research in which they enquired among
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employers which skills students need to be entrepreneurial. For example, skills such as

imagination/creativity; adaptability/flexibility are included.

The third component, Efficacy beliefs (E) is inspired by self-theories. It entails

student’s perception of their intelligence, learning approach and the confidence they have

in their abilities (self-efficacy) and their learning motivation. It articulates emotional

intelligence competencies; include the identification and the management of emotions as

crucial factors in terms of personal motivation and interpersonal relationships.

The fourth component is entitled Metacognition (M) it includes reflection and

corresponds to the student’s awareness of their knowledge, learning processes and

willingness to learn (Knight and Yorke, 2004). It concerns career development learning,

it entails that in order to preserve pleasure and success throughout their career students

must be aware of the ways of creating and taking advantage of opportunities for

reflecting on their abilities and interest.

Work and life experiences are the fifth and last part of Pool and Sewell’s model.

To increase their level of employability, students must be confronted with life and work

experiences. They must learn how to take advantage of their experiences. In addition, to

be able to exploit these competences, people must be able to benefit from reflection and

evaluation. Time for reflection should allow to gained confidence in their capabilities. In

this way, it enhances their self-efficacy, self-confidence and self-esteem.

VI. Conclusion

Unemployment is a serious issue in Philippines. It creates negative affects to unemployed

person as they are jobless and suffer from worse prospects, it can affect the income of a
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household that cause problem in buying needs, creates health problems to individual like

depression, anxiety and chronic diseases, can lead also to mental health challenges. With the

help of existing approaches and theories like Pool and Sewell’s model, it helps unemployed

individuals to practice the ways and key to employability. By then, it will lessen the

unemployment rate in the Philippines and will improve the lives of many Filipinos by having

stable jobs; they can have the ability to sustain their needs out of the money they earn from

their work, having a sense of contentment and living life full of bliss.
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