Jobless in Cordillera rising

EDITORIAL

The number of unemployed Cordillerans is rising, the National Statistics Office and the labor department reported on the heels of the celebration of the 23rd National Statistics Month in Baguio.

The Department of Labor and Employment said an estimated 4.9 percent of the Cordillera labor force is jobless this year, slightly higher than the 4.7-percent unemployed in 2011.

The number of the underemployed, who seek additional hours of work, meanwhile, rose to 21.3 percent  from only 13.5% in 2011.

NSO and DOLE define unemployment as a state when a person who is 15 years old and above is reported as “without work and/or seeking work”, while underemployment includes employed persons who express the desire to have additional hours of work in their present jobs or additional job or to have a new jobs with longer working hours for additional pay.

The Social Protection and Development Report explains that unemployment and underemployment are a factor in a higher poverty incidence.

Leading causes of unemployment and underemployment are contractual types of employment, part time jobs and on the job training.

The SPDR also noted that poor families in the Cordillera rose in 2009. This is the Cordillera alone. So why are government mouthpieces claiming the country is on the verge to becoming a “tiger economy?”

According to the average man on the street, it is those in government who maybe progressing with their increased perks and salaries while the masses or those in the private sector are still hard up and trying to make both ends meet.