Employment in establishments in NCR posts continuous drop in the first half of 2021

The 1st and 2nd quarters of 2021 posted drops in employment in establishments located in the National Capital Region (NCR) as community quarantines due to Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic were continuously implemented during the period. Labor turnover, as measured by the difference in accession and separation rates, implied negative growth in employment for both quarters. During the first quarter of 2021, labor turnover was posted at -3.1 percent and it continued to weaken during the second quarter at -1.2 percent. These can be translated to reductions of 31 workers in the 1st quarter while 12 workers in the 2nd quarter for every 1,000 persons employed in the establishments.

The accession rates for the two quarters were recorded at 7.3 percent (1st quarter) and 7.0 percent (2nd quarter). These meant that for every 1,000 employed persons, 73 and 70 workers, respectively, were hired either for business expansion or as replacement for separated workers. Similarly, separation rates indicated that for every 1,000 employed, 104 workers for the 1st quarter and 81 workers for the 2nd quarter were either laid-off by their employers or quitted their jobs. (Table 1)

Agricultural sector recovers from employment declines

By sector, agriculture, forestry, and fishing recorded improvements at 8.4 percent in the 1st quarter and 1.4 percent in the 2nd quarter. Meanwhile, similar trend was observed in the industry and services sectors wherein employment declines were recorded for the two quarters. However, both sectors depicted negative labor turnover at a slower pace in the 2nd quarter at -1.9 percent for industry and -1.0 percent in the services sector. (Figure 1)

The decline in the industry sector was due to the reduction of workforce in the manufacturing and construction for both periods. In the services sector, drops in employment in the 1st quarter were contributed by 7 out of 12 sub-sectors with remarkable decrease in the administrative support and services activities (-6.6%), followed by accommodation and food service activities (-4.4%) and arts, entertainment, and recreation (3.6%). For the 2nd quarter, 9 out of 12 industries contributed to the employment declines in the services sector which was predominantly posted in education (6.9%) and accommodation and food service activities (2.3%).

DENNIS S. MAPA, Ph.D.
Undersecretary
National Statistician and Civil Registrar General