Profiling Platform Workers in the Philippines: Evidence from the Jobs and Skills Survey

Karl Robert Jandoc, Arturo Jr. Martinez, Joseph Albert Niño Bulan, Rhea Molato and Aileen Guyos
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Karl Robert Jandoc: School of Economics, University of the Philippines Diliman
Arturo Jr. Martinez: Asian Development Bank
Joseph Albert Niño Bulan: Asian Development Bank
Rhea Molato: Asian Development Bank
Aileen Guyos: Asian Development Bank

No 202602, UP School of Economics Discussion Papers from University of the Philippines School of Economics

Abstract: Non-traditional platform work has grown rapidly in the Philippines amid technological change and longstanding labor-market constraints. Using nationally representative data from the 2025 Jobs and Skills Survey (JSS), this study provides a detailed profile of workers engaged in these emerging forms of employment. The JSS captures worker characteristics, motivations, task content, digital engagement, job quality, social protection access, and workplace conditions. Results show that platform workers are disproportionately young, urban, and highly educated, with strong geographic concentration in NCR and major urban corridors. Motivations reveal a coexistence of opportunity and vulnerability: flexibility and autonomy attract many workers—especially women and home-based freelancers—while drivers and delivery workers often enter due to limited job alternatives. Platform work exhibits lower Routine Task Intensity and strong digital complementarity but also substantial overskilling, indicating persistent skill underutilization. Despite high job satisfaction, platform workers—particularly those in delivery, driving, and outside-home services—face significantly lower access to employer-provided pension, health insurance, and separation benefits, even after controlling for worker and firm characteristics. These findings underscore the heterogeneity of non-traditional work and highlight the need for balanced policy responses that expand worker protection without constraining the flexibility and innovation that make these jobs attractive for many Filipinos.

Keywords: platform work; non-traditional employment; skills; tasks; employment benefits; digital technology; Philippines (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J22 J24 J46 J81 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50 pages
Date: 2026-03
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Published as UPSE Discussion Paper No. 2026-02, March 2026

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