The Duterte Legacy of Poor-Quality Work

February 16, 2022

by IBON Foundation

The Duterte government claims strong employment creation signalling economic recovery. But with most jobs in merely part-time, low-paying and insecure work, Filipinos are really just making do and their lives aren’t better off.

Unemployment reached record highs under the Duterte administration. Aside from this, millions of “employed” Filipinos are just making do with part-time work or with irregular, informal or self-employment.
The number of wage and salary workers grew under the Duterte administration although it isn’t clear how much of this is regular and full-time work. The number of self-employed also increased especially after the long lockdowns.
An overwhelming 95% of the 3 million net employment increase under the Duterte administration is just part-time work. Barely 1% of is in full-time work.