Unemployment

One of the first things a person does when he enters the world of independence is look for a job. The prospect is quite simple. One needs a continuous source of income to keep oneself in a self-sustaining and yet comfortable lifestyle. More often than not, one of the greatest factors that drives a person to hunt for work is the fear of poverty.

In order for man to survive he has to work. Since the dawn of time, man has struggled with everyday life to sustain his physical being here on earth and strengthen his soul in preparation for the life after this one. Whether it’s a tribe hunting animals and harvesting the fruit of trees or corporate executives spending day after day in an air-conditioned office and staring into a computer screen, work has been the means of economic survival.

Naturally, when the means of survival are not there, then life begins to falter. Little by little, it is stripped away from a human being. He is plunged deeper into hardship and suffering, a state commonly referred to as poverty.

There are many definitions of poverty. But the most widely known is the state wherein a person has very little or no finances, education, and a voice to be recognized by others. These are the people who dwell in the slums, under the bridges and freeways, and beside the polluted rivers that run through Manila’s cities. They are the poor. They are marginalized by society and shut out by the higher classes.

Poverty as the result of unemployment works both ways. It also brings about unemployment.

The most basic reason why long term unemployment leads to poverty is the lack of a source of income. If a person simply does not have the ability to sustain his payments on food, clothing, shelter, healthcare and basic services, then he will go down in the "social hierarchy" (if such exists in a society) and ultimately find himself in a life devoid of comfort and decency and with out vision.

The other factors that complete this poverty-unemployment cycle complement one another. It’s just a circle that follows one element in an endless loop, unless something is done.

Factors

• *Education
  For most poor Filipino families, the inability to earn money to cover tuition fees inevitably force them to send their children to public school. The problem is that, unlike other countries, the public school system in the Philippines is deteriorating. This poor standard of education also leads to poor skills and low levels of competence. This in turn leads to great difficulties in finding jobs.



Philippine Unemployment	July 2005
Total 15 years old and over (in '000)	54,583
Labor Force (in 000)	35,236
Labor Force Participation Rate (%)	64.6
Employment (in '000)	32,521
Employment Rate (%)	92.3
Unemployment (in 000)	2,715
Unemployment Rate (%)	7.7
Underemployment (in 000)	6,660
Underemployment Rate (%)	20.5



• *Healthcare
  The performance of a human being at work tends to suffer if his health is under constant attack from untreated ailments. No profit-generating entity would want its human component to suffer. Unless such entities provide healthcare as fringe benefits for its workers, then there is no place for the ailing workforce to go to except out the door.


• *Large Population
  A rapidly increasing population in 3rd world countries contribute to mass unemployment. Many people come looking for jobs, but their number is simply too much than the amount of jobs available. There is a glut of excess manpower. Since large families are often attributed on the poor, they are the ones who suffer the most.


• *Low Savings
  Most companies and businesses take advantage of the workforce in a 3rd world countries. There is only a small percentage of the work available to the population. There is very high number of people who are unemployed and wanting to work so this results in a high supply of labor force. This effect causes an unfair competition for the work force as people take unrealistic pay for the work they conduct. The people settle for little pay as long they are given work. These workers in turn can’t afford most of the basic necessities.


• Also see Poverty Cycle


• Also see Poor Education

Poverty comes from unemployment! Money is needed to survive. Not a lot of it is required, but a significant amount must be continuously raised to meet an Individual’s four basic needs: food, clothing, shelter, and healthcare. Without employment, the ways and means of acquiring these four basic needs will be gone. As a result, people are drawn deeper into poverty.

*tables and figures were taken from the National Statistics Office website: www.census.gov.ph

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