"Reopening the economy further while keeping the pandemic in check is a difficult, but not impossible, balancing act."
The July unemployment rate released by the Philippine Statistics Authority yesterday clearly showed the clear correlation between community lockdown and jobs.
The unemployment rate in July eased to 10 percent from a record high of 17.7 percent in April, or during the height of the enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila and most of the nation. About 4.6 million Filipinos who were 15 years old and over were unemployed in July this year, up by 2.1 million from the same month last year, but down by 2.7 million from three months ago.
The lower unemployment rate in July meant some 2.7 million jobs were restored as the quarantine level eased. Another 4.9 million workers rejoined the labor force, bringing the total jobs restored to 7.5 million jobs, as Filipinos trooped back to their workplace with the increased availability of transportation.
Acting Economic Planning Secretary and National Economic and Development Authority director-general Karl Kendrick Chua presented a direct link between the level of quarantine restriction and the labor market. The country's economic output as measured by the gross domestic product worsened to record levels in the first half of May when nearly 80 percent of the economy was placed under ECQ.
In contrast, only 2.1 percent of the economy was placed under ECQ in the first half of July, resulting in the significant reduction in the unemployment rate and the return of some 7.5 million jobs.
The full restoration of jobs lost at the height of the pandemic, however, depends on an effective transportation system that can bring workers to their job sites. Chua points out that the GCQ reopened nearly 60 percent of Metro Manila's economy but only 35.5 percent of activities were actually restored due to the insufficient public transport system.
Millions of Filipinos are aching to go back to work and reclaim their jobs. Some jobs may have been permanently lost, especially in small-scale enterprises, as many entrepreneurs do not have enough capital to sustain losing operations. Reopening the economy further while keeping the pandemic in check is a difficult balancing act. But it is not an impossible task.