The Philippines’ unemployment rate climbed to 5.4% in September 2026 from 5.3% in August, with 2.86 million people out of work, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. The jobless total increased by 909,000 from September 2025, when the unemployment rate was 3.8% and 1.96 million people were unemployed. The employment rate slipped to 94.6%, although the number of employed people rose to 50.32 million from 49.60 million a year earlier. Underemployment fell to 11.0%, representing 5.56 million workers seeking additional hours or another job. Services accounted for 62.2% of employment, ahead of agriculture and industry. Average weekly hours increased from August but declined year on year.