For fresh graduates like 22-year-old Gabriel Marquez, the transition from university life to the professional world has become increasingly daunting. Despite holding a degree, he faces a shrinking job market where competition is fierce and opportunities are scarce. Many families, seeing these bleak prospects, are now urging their children to join the millions of overseas Filipino workers seeking stability abroad. Official data reflects this struggle, as the number of unemployed Filipinos has climbed to 2.5 million, with an additional 6 million citizens classified as underemployed, desperately searching for side hustles to make ends meet.

The crisis is compounded by significant losses in the agricultural sector, where extreme weather patterns like the El Niño phenomenon have forced farmers to abandon planting seasons. Furthermore, the government has pointed to rising fuel costs linked to Middle East instability as a factor hindering local fishermen and agricultural workers. However, these explanations have faced sharp criticism from groups like the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, which argues that the administration is using external factors to deflect from ineffective domestic policies. They contend that the current labor market decline is a direct consequence of a failure to implement proactive measures that protect local workers from both environmental and geopolitical pressures.