Highlights of the March 2025 Labor Force Survey

1. The country’s employment rate in March 2025 was estimated at 96.1 percent, the same rate estimated in March 2024. Employment rate in February 2025 was estimated at 96.2 percent. (Table A-1)

   In terms of levels, the number of employed persons in March 2025 was recorded at 48.02 million. This was lower than the number of employed persons in March 2024 and February 2025, both at 49.15 million. (Table A)

2. In March 2025, the unemployment rate was registered at 3.9 percent, the same rate recorded in March 2024. In February 2025, the unemployment rate was estimated at 3.8 percent. (Table A-1)

   In terms of magnitude, the total number of unemployed individuals in March 2025 was registered at 1.93 million. This was lower than the number of unemployed persons in March 2024 at 2.00 million. In February 2025, the number of unemployed individuals was registered at 1.94 million. (Table A)

3. The labor force participation rate (LFPR) in March 2025 was estimated at 62.9 percent, lower than the estimated LFPR in March 2024 at 65.3 percent and in February 2025 at 64.5 percent. (Table A-1)

   The reported LFPR in March 2025 translates to a total of 49.96 million Filipinos aged 15 years old and over who were in the labor force, or those who were either employed or unemployed. The number of individuals aged 15 years old and over who were in the labor force was 51.15 million in March 2024 and 51.09 million in February 2025. (Table A)

4. On average, employed persons worked 41.2 hours per week. This was higher than the average hours worked in a week in March 2024 at 40.7 hours and in February 2025 at 41.1 hours. (Table A)

   About 64 thousand employed persons worked for exactly one hour in March 2025 or 0.13 percent of the total number of employed persons. This is lower than the recorded number in March 2024 at 68 thousand employed persons (0.14%), and that of February 2025 at 73 thousand employed persons (0.15%). (Table 2)

5. The underemployment rate in March 2025 increased to 13.4 percent, from 11.0 percent in March 2024 and 10.1 percent in February 2025. (Table A-1)

   In terms of magnitude, 6.44 million of the 48.02 million employed individuals expressed the desire to have additional hours of work in their present job or to have additional job, or to have a new job with longer hours of work in March 2025. (Table A)

6. By broad industry group, services continued to be the top sector in terms of the number of employed persons with a share of 62.0 percent of the total employed persons in March 2025. The agriculture and industry sectors accounted for 20.1 percent and 17.9 percent of the total number of employed persons, respectively. (Table 1)

   The top five sub-sectors in terms of annual increase in the number of employed persons in March 2025 were the following:

   1. Education (210 thousand);
   2. Administrative and support service activities (145 thousand);
   3. Fishing and aquaculture (138 thousand);
   4. Arts, entertainment and recreation (91 thousand); and
   5. Human health and social work activities (51 thousand).

   In contrast, the following five sub-sectors posted the highest annual decreases in the number of employed persons:

   1. Agriculture and forestry (-609 thousand);
   2. Public administration and defense; compulsory social security (-394 thousand);
   3. Manufacturing (-281 thousand);
   4. Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (-175 thousand); and
   5. Professional, scientific and technical activities (-100 thousand);

   (Table B)

   As to month-on-month changes in the number of employed persons in March 2025, the top five sub-sectors with the largest increase were the following:

   1. Administrative and support service activities (182 thousand);
   2. Education (157 thousand);
   3. Manufacturing (115 thousand);
   4. Information and communication (100 thousand); and
   5. Accommodation and food service activities (98 thousand).

   On the other hand, the top five sub-sectors with the largest drop in the number of employed persons from February 2025 to March 2025 were the following:

   1. Construction (-473 thousand);
   2. Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (-439 thousand);
   3. Other service activities (-290 thousand);
   4. Fishing and aquaculture (-285 thousand); and
   5. Public administration and defense; compulsory social security (-158 thousand);

   (Table B)

7. Wage and salary workers continued to account for the largest share of employed persons with 63.4 percent of the total number of employed persons in March 2025. This was followed by self-employed persons without any paid employee at 27.9 percent and unpaid family workers at 6.6 percent. Employers in own family-operated farm or business had the lowest share of 2.1 percent. (Table 1)

   Among wage and salary workers, those employed in private establishments remained to have the highest share at 78.1 percent of the wage and salary workers or 49.5 percent of the total number of employed persons. This was followed by those employed in government or government-controlled corporations with a share of 14.7 percent of the wage and salary workers or 9.3 percent of the total number of employed persons during the period. (Table 1)

8. Youth LFPR decreased to 29.4 percent in March 2025 from 33.3 percent in March 2024 and 31.1 percent in February 2025. Youth employment rate was estimated at 89.0 percent in March 2025, lower than the estimated rate of 91.3 percent in March 2024 and in February 2025 at 89.6 percent. (Table A)

(Sgd.) CLAIRE DENNIS S. MAPA, PhD                   
Undersecretary                   
National Statistician and Civil Registrar General

See more at the Labor Force Survey