By Mary Beatrice L. Umlas and James Paul R. Gomez
Life starts after college. Finishing a degree is indeed a hard-fought achievement for college students, yet little did they know that it is not the end. It is only the beginning of verging on at the crossroads.
It is almost innate in the economic culture of the Philippines that fresh college graduates fight battles to land a decent job, some even aspire to leave the country and work abroad to keep their degree in line with the nature of their work.
However, with the ever-growing challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic recession, it is truly challenging to make this possible.
Haunted job-hunters
Dennis Jaraula, 23, graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Adamson University last February 2021. He started looking for a job as early as June 2020 even though he was not ‘technically’ a graduate as he did not attend a graduation ceremony nor gained a diploma.
He almost landed a job in late August or early September but due to some issues with his application, he missed the opportunity.
“Nagsimula ako maghanap simula mga June. Oo, ganoon kahirap. Muntikan na akong matanggap. Kasi pang-anim ako sa limang hinahanap noong kumpanya. Kung hindi tumuloy ‘yung lima, tsaka pa lang ako,” Jaraula said in an interview.
“Kumbaga, natanggap na talaga ako, kaso lang tumuloy ‘yung lima,” he added.
Jaraula acknowledged that it is troublesome to secure a job in the engineering industry but the onset of the pandemic made the hunt even more impossible.
“Nahihirapan ‘yung mga kumpanya, nagtatanggal sila ng mga empleyado. Sa dami rin talaga ng naghahanap ng trabaho, sobrang hirap makipagkumpetensiya. Kailangan mayroon ka talagang iyayabang,” Jaraula said.
It is the same case for Angel Jubillee Biscocho, 21, as she worries that she might not land a job considering that she started looking for one since the first month of the year.
Biscocho finished a Bachelor’s degree in Tourism Management from the College of San Benildo-Rizal. She was not expecting that few to no tourism-related companies are looking for new employees as it is one of the most pandemic-hit industries in the country.
“Umabot na ng higit sampu ‘yung pinag-applyan ko. Sa lahat nang iyon, isa o dalawa lang ‘yung sumagot sa akin,” Biscocho said in an interview.
“Nangangamba ako kasi maraming kumpanya ang nagsasara. Maraming nagbabawas ng mga trabahador. Nangangamba ako kasi kakatapos ko lang grumaduate, saan na ako magtatrabaho? Inisiip ko rin naman ‘yung future ko,” she added.
If the pandemic did not happen, Biscocho believes that there will be more opportunities for her even after she graduated and she will be at ease looking for a job.
On the other hand, Loreta Arroyo, 21, has not yet applied for a single job but she has set her eyes on ten small companies. Apart from that, she has been receiving invitation applications from three companies.
Arroyo, who graduated from the University of Santo Tomas with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism, showed less concern in getting a job amid the pandemic. Since for her, the willingness to apply matters more.
“Okay lang sa akin na hindi magtrabaho kung ang rason ay walang kumpanya na tumatanggap. Ang hindi okay sa akin ay ‘yung hindi ako mag-aaply kasi of course that is an error on my end,” Arroyo said in an interview.
However, such a statement may not be applicable to all as some graduates are urged to merely accept the reality that destiny will not always favor their plans.
Jaraula waited several months to get accepted to any of more than ten companies he applied for. It led him to question his qualifications and prolonged his agony.
“Ano ba ang pangit ba ng resume ko? Dumating sa point na syempre ina-anxiety na ako, unti-unti nang nade-depress. Ilang buwan na akong nag-aapply eh. Ang dami ko na ring nilapitan para irefer ako, kaso wala. Sobrang hirap din talaga,” Jaraula expressed.
Meanwhile, Arroyo and Biscocho share the same sentiment about not recognizing working as an urgency, but they personally think it is essential for them as they prefer to be busy than become idle at home.
“Personally ayoko rin na matengga na sobrang tagal kasi mahirap din ‘yun. Kaya as much as possible, habang maaga pa, naghahanap na ako ng mga trabaho na mapag-applyan kahit na wala pa akong experiences,” Biscocho explained.
While these fresh graduates first opted to work in their course’s field of discipline, Arroyo, Biscocho, and Jaraula were open and willing to work for companies unrelated to their field of expertise. Given the situation, they do not see room for being picky on the limited job offers.
“Lahat naman ng trabaho na ligal ay marangal. Kung mayroong vacancy na worth P18,000 or P15,000 man yan, or kung magkano man yan, kuhain mo na. Right now, in the middle of the pandemic, mas okay na mayroon kang trabaho kaysa sa wala,” Arroyo explained.
Plummeted unemployment rate
As of June 8, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that the unemployment rate in April rose to 8.7% from 7.1 percent in March as the country continues to curb the increasing cases of coronavirus infections.
This translates to 4.14 million jobless Filipinos, indicating an increase of almost 750,000 individuals from 3.4 million jobless Filipinos last March 2021.
The data from PSA also showed that this year’s figure has improved from its year-on-year comparison, where April 2020 hit a record high of 17.6 percent with 7.23 million unemployed individuals.
The labor force participation rate stood 63.2 percent, indicating that 47.41 million people are employed or unemployed.
This is higher than the LFPR in the same month last year with 55.7 percent but lower than the LFPR in March at 65 percent.
On the other hand, the youth labor force participation rate in April 2021 was placed at 38.2 percent, indicating an increase of 3.5 percent than the youth LFPR in January 2021 with 34.7 percent and also an increase of 5.8 percent year-on-year with 34.7 percent.
The reported proportion of underemployed youths was estimated at 15.5 percent in April 2021, down from 18.1 percent year-on-year. Meanwhile, the youth unemployment rate of 15.8 percent in April 2021 was lower than forecasts in January 2021 with 19.8 percent, and 31.5 percent in April 2020.
Courage on
The data showed that many applicants have little prospect of finding work, but for fresh graduates, it is important to keep their faith and put their courage masks on.
“Palakasan nalang din talaga ng loob, kasi kahit kunyaring malungkot ka na, ina-anxiety ka pa, hindi ka pwedeng sumuko,” said Jaraula, after learning that the health crisis is really the one to blame in this kind of situation.
Despite dealing with mental issues a few months back, he found himself in the right place. He may not be in the field he expected to be working in, he is still happily employed. Not to mention, he was already promoted to a higher position.
When asked how happy he currently is, the chemical engineering graduate said, “Sobra. Sobrang welcoming ng mga workmates. In fairness naman, may nakikita naman akong personal growth sa pagiging professional ko dito sa work ko.”
Arroyo highlighted the significance of being courageous despite drawbacks and uncertainties.
“Do not be afraid to try things na sa tingin mong hindi mo alam o sa tingin mong hindi ka okay, kasi on your end na sa tingin mong hindi ka fit sa isang industry, that is just you talking,” she said.
She also encouraged her fellow graduates to try and apply for any job, may it be different from the nature of their degree.
“Try. Mag-apply sa mga industries na sa tingin nyo hindi kayo fit. Kasi wala namang mawawala ‘pag nag-apply kayo. Mas may mawawala kapag hindi kayo nag-apply. Kasi you are missing all the shots you didn’t take,” she explained.
According to Biscocho, patience and determination are the key ingredients to find hope in the problem of unemployment.
“Kailangan mo talaga ng patience and determination. Para sa akin, iyon yung panghahawakan ko. Iyon din yung ina-apply ko rin sa sarili ko na ‘sige kaya mo to, maghihintay ka. Maraming opportunities para sayo’,” she said.
On June 12, the Department of Labor and Employment celebrated Independence Day with an online job fair. An estimated 30,890 jobseekers nationwide attended the event.
Citing a report from the Bureau of Local Employment, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said that a total of 7,176 candidates who registered were qualified for the various job openings, 307 of them were hired on the spot.