Malaysia’s unemployment rate for June 2022 has declined from 3.9% in May 2022 to 3.8%, the lowest recorded since the nation was hit by Covid-19. Revealed in the latest labour report by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM), the number of unemployed individuals also decreased from 637,700 people in May to 630,600 in June.

Of the unemployed group, 83.3% was categorised as actively unemployed, described as unemployed individuals who are actively seeking for jobs. This translates to 528,500 persons, down from 534,000 persons in the previous month. Meanwhile, 16.2% of the unemployed group was considered inactively unemployed, equivalent to 102,100 persons – a decrease from 103,800 in May.

The employed persons group, on the other hand, increased from 15.90 million individuals in May to 15.94 million individuals in June, with the employees category making up 76.1% of the group (0.1% month-on-month increase). The own-account workers category also saw a positive month-on-month growth of 0.8% in June, encompassing 17.4% of the group. Similarly, the employers category saw an increase of 0.5% from last month, making up 3.4% of the group.

The improved unemployment rate is attributed to the recovery in economic activity, which fuelled demand for labour. This, in turn, opened up more job opportunities in the market. The unemployment rate is also expected to continue improving in the long-term, taking into account various key economic indicators that indicate a pick-up in recovery momentum.

Aside from revealing the monthly unemployment rate, DOSM also shared additional data on the labour force for the second quarter of 2022 (2Q22). Based on the figures, Malaysia recorded a lower unemployment rate in 2Q22 at 3.9% with 642,000 unemployed persons. This is in comparison with 4.1% in the first quarter of 2022 (1Q22), equivalent to 671,200 unemployed individuals. Moreover, the labour force also improved from 16.25 million in 1Q22 to 16.34 million in 2Q22.

In terms of labour force participation rate (LFPR) by state, Selangor came in first at the highest rate of 75.7%. This is followed by Kuala Lumpur (74.4%), Penang (71.2%), Sarawak (70.8%), and Putrajaya (70.7%). Meanwhile, other states clocked in LFPRs that range between 59% (Terengganu) to 69.4% (Johor).

(Sources: DOSM [1, 2], The Edge Markets)

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• Department of Statistics Malaysia
• DOSM
• Malaysia Unemployment Rate
• Unemployment
• Unemployment Rate