By providing an email address. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy.
BAGUIO CITY — The labor force in the mountainous Cordillera was reduced by 10,000 workers last year in the retail and mining sectors due to an economic growth slowdown in 2025, according to the latest labor force survey results which were presented at a forum on Thursday (May 21).
The survey reveals a labor force participation rate of 832,000 (63.8 percent) in 2025, which was a drop from 842,000 (65 percent) in 2024, said Aldrin Federico Bahit Jr, the region’s chief statistician of the Philippine Statistics Authority. The labor participation rate is the proportion of workers in the economy who have landed a job or are actively pursuing one.
But compared to the rest of the country, “the Cordillera had the highest employment rate among all regions in 2025 with 97.3 percent (810,000 workers) followed by Davao region with 97.1 percent and Cagayan Valley with 96.9 percent,” Bahit reported.
READ: Unemployment rate jumps to pandemic-era high of 5.8%
