3.14 Million Filipinos Jobless as Unemployment Rate Hits 6.0%
UNEMPLOYMENT – More Filipinos found themselves without jobs in July 2026, with the national unemployment rate rising to 6.0% from 5.3% a year earlier.
The number of unemployed Filipinos increased significantly in July 2026, with the country’s unemployment rate climbing to 6.0%, according to data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on Tuesday, September 8.
The latest figure represents a notable increase from the 5.3% unemployment rate recorded in July 2025. It was also higher than the 4.7% rate reported in April 2026, indicating that more Filipinos were without jobs during the month.
According to the PSA, the 6.0% unemployment rate in July 2026 translated to approximately 3.14 million unemployed Filipinos. This was considerably higher than the 2.59 million recorded during the same month last year and the 2.41 million reported in April 2026.
Meanwhile, the country’s employment rate declined during the same period. The PSA reported an employment rate of 94.0% in July 2026, lower than the 94.7% recorded in July 2025 and the 95.3% posted in April 2026.
In terms of actual numbers, the 94.0% employment rate corresponded to around 49.21 million employed Filipinos.
The PSA report also identified the sub-sectors that experienced the largest annual increases and decreases in the number of employed workers in July 2026.
“The top five sub-sectors in terms of annual increase in the number of employed persons in July 2026 were the following: Agriculture and Forestry (1.03 million); Accommodation and Food Service Activities (729 thousand); Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles (424 thousand); Administrative and Support Service Activities (201 thousand); Transportation and Storage (197 thousand),” can be read in the PSA report.
These sectors accounted for some of the biggest gains in employment compared with the previous year, particularly agriculture and forestry, which posted the highest increase.
However, several industries experienced employment declines over the same period.
“In contrast, the following five sub-sectors posted the highest annual decreases in the number of employed persons: Manufacturing (-134 thousand); Information and Communication (-41 thousand); Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities (-28 thousand); Water Supply; Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Activities (-9 thousand); Financial and Insurance Activities (-7 thousand),” it added.
The July figures highlight the changing employment situation in the Philippines, with overall unemployment increasing while the employment rate fell compared with both July 2025 and April 2026.
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