STATEMENT OF SENATOR WIN GATCHALIAN ON THE APRIL 2019 UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has reported that the labor force - composed of Filipinos aged 15 years and above - grew to 72.54 million in April 2019 from 71.02 million in the same month last year, for an employment rate of 94.9 percent. While this is a decent year-on-year improvement, the PSA also noted that the latest underemployment rate is at 13.5 percent.

We need to focus on resolving jobs-skills mismatch if we are to address underemployment in the country. Kasama sa pag-aayos ng mismatch na ito ang pagpapalakas sa K-12 curriculum, partikular sa Senior High School. We need to align the curriculum with the current job market.

I look forward to the results of the K-12 curriculum review being conducted by DepEd. I am also eager to work closer with Secretary Briones and DepEd in the 18th Congress to improve the quality of education in the country.