PUTRAJAYA: Unemployment continues to decline in the second quarter of 2024, in line with increased demand for labour in the economic sector, according to the Labour Market Review, Second Quarter 2024 (LMR Q2 2024) released today.
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the number of labour force grew by 2.5 per cent to 17.15 million persons, primarily driven by 2.8 per cent increase in the number employed persons, which reached 16.59 million persons in the second quarter of 2024.
“During the same period, the number of unemployed persons continued to decrease by 4.1 per cent to 557,800 persons registering an unemployment rate of 3.3 per cent, unchanged for three consecutive quarters,” he said in a statement.
He said escalating household spending due to a strong labour market and broader policy support contributed to the improved performance of Malaysia’s economy which achieved a higher growth rate of 5.9 per cent in the second quarter of 2024 compared to 4.2 per cent in the preceding quarter.
Additionally, he said further expansion in exports along with potential investments flowing into the country also played important roles in strengthening the demand for labour.
Mohd Uzir said the labour supply remained strong as the labour force participation rate increased by 0.5 percentage points year-on-year to 70.5 per cent.
Observing the underemployment situation in the second quarter of 2024, the number of persons working less than 30 hours per week declined by 1.6 per cent compared to the same quarter in 2023.
“As a result, the number of persons in time-related underemployment decreased by 8.9 per cent to 169,800 persons, with a rate of 1.0 per cent,” he said.
As the economy advanced in the second quarter of 2024, he said labour productivity measured by value added per employment edged up by 3.1 per cent as compared to the same quarter last year reaching a value of RM24,151 per person (Q2 2023: RM23,434; Q1 2024: RM24,236).
Meanwhile, the total hours worked during the second quarter of 2024 improved by 3.4 per cent registering a total of 9.61 billion hours.
“Consequently, value added per hour worked increased by 2.4 per cent with a value of RM41.7 per hour (Q2 2023: RM40.7; Q1 2024: RM42.1),” he added.
