Labor

The labor and welfare conditions of employees both working for government and private firms are given importance. The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) an executive body mandated in order to promote gainful employment opportunities, develop human resources, protect works and their welfare, and maintain industrial peace. As of January 2005, there was a slight increased in the labor force population, by 0.6% to 35.7 million from 35.4 million. The unemployment rate was around 11.7% in 2004. The underemployment rate of the work forces reached 7.7% in 2005. As of 2004, the distributions of the labor force in the Philippines were as follows, agriculture 36%, industry 16% and services 48%.