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Senators tell DOLE, PSA to revisit 'distorted' labor surveys

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Adrian Ayalin, ABS-CBN News

MANILA — Senate Minority Leader Koko Pimentel told the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to look into employment surveys being conducted by the Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA).Pimentel noted that the employment data, which are being used by the President during State of the Nation Addresses, are &quot;distorted&quot; because they include 10 to 30 day jobs such as those being offered by the DOLE under its TUPAD or Tulong Panghanap-buhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers program.During his SONA this year, President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. said the Philippine economy has started to bounce back from the pandemic, citing the 95.7 percent employment rate recorded this year.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/25/23/some-senators-question-figures-cited-by-marcos-during-2nd-sona">&#x27;Far from reality&#x27;: Some senators question figures cited by Marcos during 2nd SONA</a></li></ul>But several groups and lawmakers found the figure &quot;far from reality.&quot; Sen. Imee Marcos called PSA&#x27;s definition of employment &quot;bizarre.&quot;<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/07/27/23/di-makatotohanan-imee-calls-out-psa-for-bizarre-definition-of-employment">&#x27;Di makatotohanan&#x27;: Imee calls out PSA for &#x27;bizarre&#x27; definition of employment</a></li></ul>Pimentel made the assertion during the Senate plenary deliberations of the 2024 budget of the DOLE and its attached agencies.“I think it is unfair and it distorts our data if a person who received the amount equivalent to minimum wage, for 7 to 10 days in a year and reported to having been employed,” Pimentel said.“Siguro if the DOLE and PSA can sit down to define with the help of the ILS (Institute for Labor Studies), sila ang experts dito to define who is an employed person,” Pimentel added.DOLE officials told Sen. Loren Legarda, the sponsor of the budget of the department, that the surveys use international labor standards.Legarda however noted that she agrees with the proposal of Pimentel to tweak the employment survey methods.“We would be happy to receive from your honor on how to improve it, while this has been historically done, there are ways, room for improvement,” Legarda said.The PSA’s figures for unemployment are often lower than those from independent survey firms like the Social Weather Stations. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/05/26/23/sws-69-percent-of-filipinos-say-its-hard-to-find-jobs">SWS: 69 percent of Filipinos say it&#x27;s hard to find jobs</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/05/08/23/ph-unemployment-rate-dips-to-47-pct-in-march">PH unemployment rate dips to 4.7 pct in March</a></li></ul>An SWS survey in March showed the unemployment rate at 19 percent or 8.7 million jobless Filipino workers.This was much higher than the PSA’s 4.7 percent unemployment rate or 2.42 million jobless Filipino workers in the same month. SWS attributed this to the differences in their definition of unemployment. “For example, SWS directly asks if the respondent has work at present, whereas PSA specifies a minimum of one hour of work to be counted as employed. The leniency of this requirement made it very easy to be officially categorized as employed,” SWS said in its March joblessness report. Meantime, Sen. Raffy Tulfo stressed his proposal for the non-renewal of business licenses of companies that failed to give their employees their 13th month pay before December 24th.“Magpapasko na, alam niyo po iyong 13th month pay dun sa maliliit na kababayan, inaasahan kasi extra money yan, pinaplano nila ano bibilhin ko sa 13th mon pay?” Tulfo said.Upon consultation with DOLE officials, Legarda proposed the coordination between the labor department and the Department of the Interior and Local Government since renewals are handled by local governments, through their Business Permits and Licensing Offices.“Tayo po ay sang-ayon talaga, malaking bagy ang 13th month pay at sana pag kumikita naman gawing 14th month pay,” Legarda said.The proposed 2024 budget for the Office of the Secretary of the DOLE is 38.718 billion while P71 million is proposed for the ILS, P1.436 billion for the National Labor Relations Commission, and P1.773 billion for the Professional Regulations Commission.

Sen. Koko Pimentel made the assertion during the Senate plenary deliberations of the 2024 budget of the DOLE and its attached agencies.

Senators tell DOLE, PSA to revisit 'distorted' labor surveys

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Senators tell DOLE, PSA to revisit 'distorted' labor surveys

Adrian Ayalin,

ABS-CBN News

Published Nov 15, 2023 07:54 PM PHT

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