It’s a good time to be looking for a job in the Philippines. According to the latest Monster Employment Index (MEI) data for May 2016, online hiring activity has registered positive growth for the first time ever this year.
Overall recruitment activity has increased 11% between May 2015 and May 2016. This is a 14% improvement from the previously reported -3% decline year-on-year for April.
Tracked by employment website Monster.com, the MEI Philippines is a gauge of online job posting activity, recording the industries and occupations that show the highest and lowest growth in recruitment activity locally.
The Retail sector reported a whopping 106% year-over-year growth in online hiring activity – the steepest growth registered of the industries monitored by the MEI. This is up from 49% year-over-year reported in April.
The Production/Manufacturing, Automotive and Ancillary sector continued to register the sharpest year-over-year decline at -34% in May. This is an improvement from -56% registered between April 2015 and 2016.
Across occupational groups, HR & Admin roles took the lead in the growth of hiring activities at 39% year-over-year. This is huge 34% improvement from the 5% registered in April.
Online hiring in Hospitality & Travel roles remained the weakest, registering -55% year-over-year decline.
“A recent survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) revealed strong employment among Filipinos. Preliminary reports have also shown that local unemployment stands at around 6.1% in April 2016, down 0.3% from April 2015. As Philippines continue to position itself as one of Asia’s growth areas, foreign investments are likely to continue to pour into the country to spur growth and hiring,” said Sanjay Modi, Managing Director, Monster.com – APAC and Middle East.
“The Philippines’ retail sector continues to exhibit strong growth partly due to increased consumer spending power, fuelled by increasing income in the BPO sectors. It was recently reported that the hospitality sector had contributed P1.39 trillion to the Philippines economy, despite slower recruitment across these roles. This has likely resulted from the slower turnover within the sector after its hiring spree last May, which worked out well for the sector. Until the need arises, employers are in no hurry to add to their headcount.”
The Monster Employment Index Philippines is a monthly gauge of online job posting activity, based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of career websites and online job listings across Philippines. The Index does not reflect the trend of any one advertiser or source, but is an aggregate measure of the change in job listings across the industry.