Labour department is anticipating a spike in the number of jobless as students graduate this month.

Department of Labour and Employment (Dole) Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said that their office is anticipating around 600,000 to 700,000 new entrants to the labour force, majority of which are fresh graduates this March.

These new entrants will join last year’s 4^th quarter estimate of more than 12 million jobless across the country, a figure based on a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey.

The secretary said that, to address the issue of joblessness this summer, the department will be releasing jobs fair schedules. She said that the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) is also offering training for those who want to hone their skills for specific jobs.

The secretary straightforwardly admitted that job demand is growing each year, outpacing the government’s efforts to create jobs. She said that the Aquino administration is creating more jobs each year, but new entrants to the labour force cancel out the growth: ‘tabla-tabla lang po, two percent ho ‘yung pumapasok sa labor force; two percent din lang ho ‘yung naki-create annually.’

At present, the population growth rate according to a forecast by University of Denver’s International Futures is at 1.585%. If trends remain, then the number of Filipinos who reach their employable age yearly will also remain steady, making unemployment a perpetual problem in the country.

One solution to this problem is to spur the entrepreneurial sector to create more jobs. Congress is also seeking to amend the Constitution regarding laws on foreign investments to allow more investors to create jobs.