MALAYSIA’S unemployment rate decreased in February 2022 at 4.1%, or 671,800 people, against January’s 680,40.
Based on the Department of Statistics Malaysia’s labour force survey, February saw a strengthened labour force.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the increase was prompted by all economic and social activities being in operation during the month.
He noted that the growth also reflects more labour demand by businesses as well as new job openings for businesses to sustain.
“Subsequently, it led to the reduction in the number of unemployment and lower unemployment rate during the month.
“February’s unemployment rate edged down to 4.1% from 4.2% in January 2022,” he said in a recent statement.
On a month-on-month basis, the number of employed persons also increased 0.3% to 15.73 million persons in February from 15.69 million in January, recording a higher employment-to-population ratio at 66.3%.
As a result, the labour force continued to grow month-to-month, increasing by 0.2% to 16.4 million people from 16.37 million in January. In February, the labour force participation rate remained unchanged at 69.1%.
Commenting further, Mohd Uzir said the actively unemployed, or jobseekers, accounted for 83.7% of the total unemployed people throughout the month.
“The number of people in this group fell by 1.2% to 562,500 from 569,500 persons in January.
“Those who had been jobless for less than three months made up 56.7% of the total active unemployed, while those who had been unemployed for more than three months made up the rest,” he added.
Out of the total actively unemployed, 56.7% were unemployed for less than three months while those who were in long-term unemployment of more than a year made up a share of 7.3%.
Meanwhile, the number of people who believed there were no jobs available or who were inactively jobless fell by 1.4% to 109,300 from 110,900 persons in January 2022.
The unemployment rate for youth aged 15 to 24 decreased in February to 13.0% or 356,900 persons from 364,500 in January.
Likewise, the unemployment rate for youth aged 15 to 30 decreased to 8.1% at 513,700 persons (January 2022: 8.3%; 521,800 persons).
Mohd Uzir said the employee category made up the largest composition of employed persons, comprising a share of 76.6%, registering a month-on-month rise of 0.1% to 12.05 million persons from January 2022.
“Separately, a similar trend was observed in the own-account workers’ category which increased by 0.7% in February to register 2.67 million persons from 2.66 million in January,” he added.
The increase in the number of employed persons in the services sector persisted largely in food and beverage (F&B) services, wholesale and retail trade, and transportation and storage activities.
Similarly, employment in the manufacturing and construction industries also increased. Agriculture and mining and quarrying, on the other hand, continued to see a decline in the number of people employed.
As for the inactive group, the number of persons outside the labour force continued to decrease with a reduction of 0.2% to 7.32 million persons from 7.33 in January.
Of the above, 41.7% was due to household or family duties, and 40.9% was due to schooling and training, composed primarily of women.
He added that encouraging economic activity gives a positive signal to the labour market, thus encouraging more inclusion and enabling the labour market to remain strong for the months to come.
Additionally, the country’s transition to the endemic phase, opening of international borders, physical distancing and removal of other restrictions are allowing all economic and business activities to continue operating.
“This encourages more international travel activities to take place and helps to revitalise the country’s tourism sector as well as tourism-related activities.
“The reopening of the country’s borders is also seen as a catalyst to revive the shortage of foreign labour in the country,” he concluded.
Source: https://themalaysianreserve.com/2022/04/11/malaysia-records-lower-unemployment-in-february/