Retrenchments and layoffs during the first half of 2007 dropped by 65.5 percent as the number of establishments which closed down or reduced workers due to economic difficulties also declined, latest figures of the Department of Labor and Employment show.

This translates to a decrease in the number of retrenched workers by about 39,000 – from 59,376 in first half of 2006 to 20,478 in the same period in 2007.

Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics BLES figures  show establishments that filed retrenchment report with the DOLE declined by 54 percent – from 2,979 in the first semester of 2006 to 1,363 in the same period in 2007, of which 255 were closures and 1,115 were those that reduced workers.

Also, from January to June 2007, compliance to the minimum wage improved at 84.2 percent from 82.6 percent and 81.3 percent during the same period in 2006 and 2005, respectively.

The Labor Turnover Survey in the second quarter of 2007 showed an increase of 2.4 percent in accessions or additions to employment from 8.9 percent to 11.3 percent.

DOLE said the employment expansion was one of the highest since 2005 and results of the survey complemented the data on retrenchments and wage compliance amid the country’s improving economy.

As the economy grew in 2007, less workers were retrenched with more establishments complying with the minimum wage and generating more jobs, DOLE added.*

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