.
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) remains concerned over the rising number of underemployed persons following the release of the July 2012 Labor Force Survey.
"One indicator in the July 2012 LFS that seriously concerns us at the Department of Labor and Employment is the rising number of underemployed persons," Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said in a statement.
"These are employed persons who want additional hours of work in their present job; or who want to have additional job; or who want a new job with longer working hours," she added.
In July 2012, Baldoz said, there were 8.546 million underemployed persons, or 22.7 percent, an increase of 1.451 million a year before.
She said the increase occurred largely among wage and salary workers in private establishments where most of the employment expansion during the quarter materialized
In the July 2012 LFS, the employment rate of the country went up to 93.0 percent from the 92.9 percent a year earlier while the unemployment rate went down from 7.1 percent last year to 7.0 this year.
According to Baldoz, the current unemployment rate is already within the government's unemployment target range.
"Except for this (underemployment), all other LFS indicators show - and this gives us confidence - that the country is within its unemployment target range of 6.8 to 7.2 percent for the year," said the labor chief.
On employment growth, Baldoz said the department welcomes the increase in employment rate despite the increase in the country's labor force from 39.928 million in July 2011 to 40.427 million in July 2012, or an addition of 499,000.
.
