Manila: The Ilocos Region achieved a 96.2 percent employment rate in 2025, marking a marginal rise from the previous year's 96.1 percent, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Ilocos regional office.
According to Philippines News Agency, PSA Ilocos Region director Sheila de Guzman presented these findings at the Annual 2024 and 2025 Labor Force Survey Report forum. The data indicates that the increase in employment translates to 2.33 million employed residents in 2025, up from 2.30 million in 2024, representing an additional 33,000 individuals gaining employment.
Within the region, Ilocos Norte reported the highest employment rate at 99.2 percent, while La Union had the lowest at 95.3 percent. Notably, Ilocos Sur experienced a slight decline in its employment rate, decreasing from 98.7 percent in 2024 to 97.1 percent in 2025.
De Guzman also highlighted an increase in the region's labor force, which grew from 2.39 million in 2024 to 2.43 million in 2025, with labor force participation rising to 65.3 percent from 64.6 percent the previous year. Ilocos Norte led in labor force participation rate at 73.7 percent, whereas La Union had the lowest at 62.7 percent, and Pangasinan saw a slight decrease of 0.5 percent.
The region's labor force remains predominantly male, with a participation rate of 76.2 percent compared to 54.2 percent among females. Additionally, the youth labor force participation rate saw an uptick, increasing to 34.5 percent in 2025 from 33.8 percent in 2024, with 279,000 of the 314,000 youth participants employed.
The services sector dominates the region's employment landscape, accounting for 59.4 percent of total employment, followed by agriculture at 23.2 percent and the industry sector at 17.4 percent. Notable employment growth was observed in agriculture and forestry, human health and social work services, and fishing and aquaculture industries from 2024 to 2025.
Conversely, industries such as construction, wholesale and retail trade, and manufacturing experienced the most significant employment declines between 2024 and 2025.
The unemployment rate in the region slightly decreased from 3.9 percent in 2024 to 3.8 percent in 2025, with 92,900 individuals classified as unemployed in 2025 compared to 93,700 in 2024. La Union recorded the highest unemployment rate at 4.7 percent, while Ilocos Norte had the lowest at 0.8 percent.
The region's underemployment rate rose from 10.2 percent in 2024 to 12.1 percent in 2025, with 283,000 individuals seeking additional working hours, up from 235,000 the previous year.
