LABOR UNIONS said “millions” of agriculture and forestry jobs have been lost due to the dearth of food processing companies to buy the farmers’ harvests.
Kilusang Mayo Uno Secretary-General Jerome M. Adonis told BusinessWorld via Viber that the losses are estimated at 2.68 million workers as of January.
“We don’t have an industry that can process even just basic goods for food. More so, farmers don’t have support from the government to produce food for the country’s needs. This is why farmers are at a loss. This is why the employment in agriculture fell,” he said.
Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino National President Luke S. Espiritu told BusinessWorld in an e-mail that economic policy favors large companies, resulting in “productive sectors from the labor small-business, peasant, and fishing industries being overlooked.”
The agriculture and forestry sectors posted the second-largest job losses in January, as “this situation likely stems from the end of the cropping season and unfavorable weather conditions for agriculture, resulting in part-time or low-paying agricultural jobs that are not regarded as regular employment,” Federation of Free Workers President Jose Sonny G. Matula said in a Viber message.
Wage disparities are a factor behind workers quitting the sector, as is the lack of stable working conditions, Mr. Matula said.
The Philippine Statistics Authority on Friday released the January labor force survey, which reflected employment declines after the holiday season.
Agriculture accounted for 21.4% of the labor force, according to the survey.
Unemployment hit six-month high in January with 2.15 million jobless, compared to December’s 1.60 million. The reading was the highest since the 4.8% posted in July. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana
