EMONG'S JOURNALS

As the world economy recovers from the pandemic, businesses now face another challenge – the ‘Great Resignation,’ a phrase coined in 2021 to describe the trend of millions of employees worldwide leaving their jobs. In the Philippines, for instance, resignation was the top reason for unemployment in 2021. In its Mission: Rebooting Economic Activities through Community Engagement (RACE) program survey, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said that 85,045 of the over 2.39 million unemployed workers resigned from their work last year. Meanwhile, in Metro Manila, the country’s capital, the labor turnover rate, which refers to the difference between hiring (accession) and the rate of job termination or resignation (separation), has implied negative growth in employment in the first half of 2021. The Labor Turnover Survey released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported a labor turnover rate of -3.1% in the first quarter of l...

Why do some countries usually end up poor? A hundred and ninety-six countries, 25 of which are rich - the rest are poor. The Philippines is one of the emerging markets and is the sixth richest in Southeast Asia by GDP per capita values, after the regional countries of Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. But, poverty in the country has always remained a critical social problem that calls to be addressed, where 21.6% of the current population lives below the poverty line. A YouTube video from the School of Life channel lays down the reasons why the poor countries stay poor and the rich countries rich. WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

Take note, all ye Millenials. While Millenials have always thought that a college degree is an infallible ticket to high-paying jobs, many recent college graduates are finding they can't get jobs that pay much more than the minimum wage. In fact, these fresh college graduates are facing a higher unemployment rate than those without college degrees, and the anemic job market is adding some extra stress to carry for many millennials. JobStreet.com Philippines has this to say. 1. ATTITUDE. In their recent study, JobStreet Fresh Graduates Report 2017, country manager Philip Gioca said that employers are looking at the attitude of applicants since most fresh graduates are millennials—and millennials have the reputation of leaving work after a short period of time. Employers, he said, are now looking for applicants who are positive in terms of working and stay longer in terms of tenure. 2. FIELD OF STUDY. The study also revealed the second thing employers consider is the fie...

Will a robot someday steal your job? Day by day, the machines are getting smarter and more efficient than people. Employers find it more practical to use them because their basic AI (artificial intelligence) is substantially doing tasks that a person used to do. A computer program usually does the job faster, more accurately, for less money, and without any health insurance costs. They don't charge for overtime nor ask for paid leaves. A recent Oxford University study compared the tasks of nearly a thousand jobs to the predicted future ability of robotic technologies, specifically in the fields of "Machine Learning" and "Machine Robotics". Using a methodology called Gaussian process, the Oxford researchers measured the "probability of computerization" of various professions and found out that robots have the potential to substitute for human brains and hands. Administrative, clerical and production workers might be the first to be replaced ...

How much should a Filipino family earn to have a simple, comfortable life? An animated video explainer from ABS-CBN shows what a a Filipino family of four must earn to have a "simple and comfortable" life. The data came from a survey conducted by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA). Music from Kevin McLeod. Graphics from Angela Maria Salaño & Pamela Denice Ramos. WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS POST? Share your ideas by commenting.

Nowadays, even criminals are preferring digital over analog. While the Philippine National Police (PNP) has curbed down the number of street crimes in the country, statistics from its Anti-Cybercrime Group (ACG) say a total of 847 cases of cybercrime were reported from Jan to Nov 2015, or up by 56% as compared to 544 cases reported for the entire 2014. In a report from GMA news , Director General Ricardo Marquez said that the PNP has "more or less reduced or extinguished the existence of armed bank robberies," but it has "seen the emergence of computer crimes, ATM fraud, skimming," with several of the cases involving foreigners. Breakdown of the reported cybercrimes listed below: online scam or estafa: 292 (up from 154 last year) online libel: 188 (up from 112) online threat: 84 (up from 56) identity theft: 71 (up from 61) photo and video voyeurism: 52 (up from 43) hacking: 51 (up from 41) robbery/extortion: 27 (up from 11) unjust vexation: 26 (up...

Wipe those sweat away and try to be happy! Study proves it's actually advantageous for you when you ride the MRT to work. According to a Japanese research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2015, riding the bus or train to work is associated with a lower risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, and being overweight. It's because people who ride trains or bus commuters need to walk further than those who regularly walk or bike, not to mention those who drive to work.  "If it takes longer than 20 minutes one-way to commute by walking or cycling, many people seem to take public transportation or a auto in urban areas", said the study's lead author Dr. Hisako Tsuji, director of the Moriguchi City Health Examination Center, in a press release. A survey conducted on about 6,000 adults who attended the Moriguchi City Health Examination Center filled out a questionnaire on physical activity and how they got to work. It compared b...

The top three universities in the Philippines - University of the Philippines (UP), Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU) and De La Salle University (DSLU) - are ranked lower in 2015 compared to their positions last year, according to the annual Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings. UP, which used to be in the 367th place, slipped to 401 - 410 while AdMU dropped from 461-470 in 2014 to 501-550 this year. DLSU fell from 701+ from last year's 651-700. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States is still the world's top university, says the QS rankings. In Asia, the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University remain to be the region's top universities, listed at 12th place and 13th place respectively. "These latest results reveal more diversity than ever in the distribution of world-class universities at the highest levels. We're providing prospective students with the richest picture yet,...

Yup, the truth does hurt - your cat doesn't really need you and she doesn't care when you're away, says a new study conducted at England’s University of Lincoln and published in the PLOS One journal. The study said that cats have far less attachment to their owners than dogs, and do not need their human companions to feel safe and protected. Here's what the scientists in England said: The procedure comprised of two conditions: modified (A) and reversed modified (B) version of the Ainsworth SST both consisting of nine 3 minute episodes in which the cat is either alone or with the owner and/or a stranger in order to assess how it responds to a series of procedures designed to alter the level and form of social support available to it, or trigger seeking out of an attachment figure (see Table 1 for details of the procedures and “Data collection and analysis plan” below for details of the specific predictions made in different circumstances if a cat is secur...

SO , you're done eating at your favorite restaurant and paid a total of P199 for your meal. After handing the waiter your two P100 bills, he then tells you, "Sorry, ma'am, but we don't have a P1 coin for your change." Who cares, it's just P1.00 -- you don't have enough time to argue so you just walk away and leave the restaurant. What the BSP says According to ABS-CBN's Failon Ngayon TV program in its July 4 episode, it's common for business establishments and drivers of public vehicles to argue that they do not have enough coins to give their consumers. Deputy Director for the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Grace Malic, however, said that this is not a valid argument for not giving an exact change as there are enough coins in circulation, in fact, a total of around 23 billion pieces of coins is in circulation all over the country. How much do they earn? Mike Untalan of the United Filipinos for Consumers and Commuters said tha...

S urprise, surprise! Metro Manila didn't even make it on the top ten cities in the world with the worst traffic. A study from Castrol's  2014 Magnatec Stop-Start Index showed Indonesia's capital Jakarta has the world's worst traffic jams. Jakarta has an estimated 33,240 stop-starts per year, meaning they spent 27.22 percent of their total travel time in idling mode. According to a report from ABS-CBN News, the index used data shared anonymously by millions of TomTom navigation users around the world to calculate the number of stops and starts made per kilometer. It multiplied the number by the average distance driven every year in the 78 countries included in the index. Metro Manila was not included in the index, though an international study by JICA revealed that Philippines loses P2.4 billion in potential income due to traffic jams in NCR. Below is a complete list of the cities with the worst traffic jams. Be sure to prepare yourself when you go visit them...