The Philippines, dubbed the most active job market in Southeast Asia, will continue to actively hire contractual or temporary workers, a survey conducted by online job portal Jobstreet by SEEK showed.
The results of the survey, Hiring, Compensation & Benefits Report 2025 released on Tuesday showed the Philippines had the highest number of employers hiring jobseekers and reducing workers last year.
The Philippines recorded an 83 percent activity level, followed by Indonesia at 75 percent, Malaysia at 74 percent, Singapore at 58 percent, and Thailand at 51 percent.
The latest survey report said 94 percent of employers in the Philippines had hired candidates, with 87 percent employing permanent full-time employees, 49 percent bringing in permanent part-time employees, 44 percent hiring contractual/temporary full-time employees, and 26 percent onboarding contractual/temporary part-time employees.
Jobstreet by SEEK said this trend can be attributed to business expansion, increasing preference for a temporary workforce and workforce flexibility, and demand for new skill sets.
“Heavy reliance on contract and temporary candidates is set to continue, with 46 percent of companies leading this trend in hiring for the first half of 2025,” the Jobstreet by SEEK stated.
Based on the survey, the Philippines and Indonesia experienced significant growth in the hiring of contractual/temporary full-time employees over the past year.
Both countries also experienced the highest workforce reductions last year, likely due to their greater preference for flexible workforces.
Jobstreet said 34 percent of companies in 2024 experienced layoffs, retrenchments, or did not replace employees who resigned.
This trend may also be related to candidates who have been affected by transitioning into new roles, as national statistics agencies across these countries indicate continued employment growth and declining unemployment rates, the survey said.
The survey was conducted among over 7,000 hirers and HR professionals across different industries in the region, between September and October 2024.
