Discussants:
Ms. Concepcion Sardaña, Senior Program Officer, International Labor Organization
Dr. Patricia Licuanan, Chair, Commission on Higher Education
Unemployment in the Philippines remains high by Southeast Asian standards notwithstanding the change in definition of unemployment in 2005. Firm level data also support the survey finding of a heightened sense of employment insecurity among workers in recent years. The sluggish growth of employment is often cited as an argument for reducing labor regulations which, it is claimed, increase the cost of doing business and thereby only exacerbate unemployment. However, the empirical evidence to support this policy prescription is scanty for the Philippines and at best mixed for other countries. The key to stable and productive employment is rapid and sustained economic growth supported by investments in physical and human capital.