EMPLOYERS Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) president Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. on Thursday said the country’s employment rate bounced back to its pre-pandemic level due to the Marcos administration’s efforts to create more jobs and further open up the Philippine economy.

In an interview with People’s Television Network (PTV), Ortiz-Luis particularly noted the recovery of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) accounting for nearly 65 percent of total employment, which has helped fuel the growth of the economy.

“Kung hindi doon sa pagbubukas ng ekonomiya ay marami, alam mo naman, lalo na iyong mga micro industries natin ay kalahati niyan ay nagsara during the pandemic 65 percent of employment comes from them. Ngayon, nakikita nating unti-unti na silang nagbubukas, at marami na ang tao na naka-standby ang tinatawag nila ,” Ortiz-Luis said.

He said inflation remains manageable, expressing confidence that the country is still on track toward economic recovery.

“Well, I will not say out of control iyong inflation, medyo mataas lang pero iyan naman ay manageable pa iyan. At talaga namang on track tayo dahil tuluy-tuloy naman ang paglago ng ating ekonomiya,” said Ortiz-Luis.

On Wednesday, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported the 95.5 percent annual expansion of the employment rate in the country, up from the previous month’s 95 percent rise and is the highest recorded rate since January 2020.

During the period, the unemployment rate returned to the pre-pandemic level of 4.5 percent, or about 2.24 million Filipinos.

The labor force participation rate in October this year improved to 64.2 percent from 62.6 percent in the same period last year.

Ortiz-Luis, however, cited the need to intensify efforts to address skills mismatch and attract investments that will generate more jobs.

“Ang name of the game there is addressing the mismatch – kung ano iyong hinahanap ng mga industriya, hinahanap ng mga employers, ay iyon ang hinahanapan natin ng ka-match. So, iyon ang importante ,” said Ortiz-Luis.

He said the recent travels of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. also paved the way for more investors and drive critical investments in a wide range of sectors.

“So, iyong pagbiyahe-biyahe ng Pangulo sa iba’t ibang bansa ay talagang nakaka-attract ng investments iyan,” he said.

“Lahat ng mga pledges ay hindi naman nagkakatotoo iyong iba, pero marami rin ay talagang natutuloy at marami riyan ang nagki-create ng jobs. At saka iyong tiwala ng mga international investments sa atin ay tumataas,” Ortiz-Luis added. Philippine News Agency