Cordillera Posts Philippines' Top 97.3% Employment Rate in 2025 as Labor Force Shrinks by 10,000
Updated
Updated · northluzonmonitor.com · May 25
Cordillera Posts Philippines' Top 97.3% Employment Rate in 2025 as Labor Force Shrinks by 10,000
1 articles · Updated · northluzonmonitor.com · May 25
Cordillera logged a 97.3% employment rate in 2025, the highest in the Philippines and above the 95.8% national average, even as its labor force fell to 832,000 from 842,000.
That decline pushed the region's labor-force participation rate down to 63.8%, slightly below the 64.1% national level, which statisticians said signals a transition in the local workforce.
Job quality improved as underemployment dropped to 11.7% from 12.9%, cutting the number of underemployed workers to 95,000 from 106,000; services remained the biggest employer at 46.3%.
Mountain Province led regional indicators with a 98.5% employment rate and 1.5% unemployment, but also had the highest underemployment at 24.5%, while Baguio City posted the weakest employment rate at 95.8%.
The data also showed persistent gaps: male participation and employment stayed ahead of female levels, while youth participation fell to 22.5% from 24.7% and youth underemployment edged up to 12.3%.
With a top employment rate but shrinking workforce, is CAR's economy thriving or just hollowing out?
Can a World Bank loan and new food tech trends reverse the youth exodus from Cordillera's job market?