The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically transformed the economic landscape in the Philippines with its unprecedented impacts on establishments and employment. Establishments in hospitality, manufacturing, transportation, construction, food and service activities, arts, and entertainment industries, among others, are considered high-risk and may only remain operative if containment measures are in place. These industries also have the lion's share of workers, totaling about 7.8 million Filipinos. Moreover, wholesale and retail trade sectors, information and communication, financial and insurance activities, real estate, water and waste management activities, and professional and scientific services face the medium risk of job disruption. These services are likely to be affected by lockdown suspending operations for the time being. In January 2021, approximately 5 million workers were already affected by the pandemic, and about 420,000 lost their jobs due to retrenchment or permanent establishment closure (DOLE, 2021). These impacts of the pandemic since 2020 exacerbate the vulnerability of workers in different sectors and place many businesses at risk.
