LETTER: The latest forecast has revealed that Malaysia remains on the road to recovery, with the Gross Domestic Product growth rate recording an improvement from -17.1 per cent in the second quarter of this year, to -2.7 per cent in the third quarter of this year.
However, some economists are worried about the slower-than expected employment growth rate.
The recovery in overall employment was in some sense illusory. The composition of jobs had shifted, with millions transitioning from full-time employment to part-time employment as full-time jobs have become relatively scarce. The number of full-time employees has declined and, at the same time, the number of part-time employees is on the rise.
The gain in part-time work has helped disguise the decline in full-time work because, should anyone look at the total employment numbers, the magnitude of the decline would seem insignificant.
Another troubling pattern was that, as of Q1 2020, the Statistics Department reported that those in the 15 to 30 age group recorded the highest unemployment rate (6.9 per cent) followed by 31 to 45 years (1.4 per cent) and 46 to 64 years (1.1 per cent).
The unemployment rate is lower for older workers. This age-related difference in employment is due to employers favouring experienced workers in tough times. If one had only looked at the unemployment rate, one might have concluded that things had returned to normal.
But, the information of part-time versus full-time jobs and age-related unemployment rate indicates that the Malaysian labour market is still struggling.
To minimise these negative effects, the government should prioritise employment retention measures, especially for younger workers. Some immediate measures that the government should implement is to subsidise employers that guaranteed the laid-off employees can return to work again once the situation improves.
This would greatly assist in preserving the employment relationships and facilitating the recovery phase. The government should introduce policies and guidelines on work-sharing arrangement, i.e the reduction of working time and volume of work to avoid further layoffs. However, it is important to note that decreased earnings must be compensated through wage supplements.
Substantial reductions in hours of work and wages can cause serious hardships, particularly among low-wage, often younger workers. So, the government should adopt a measure that provides the lowest paid workers with, say, 90 per cent of their normal wages, middle earners with 85 per cent and higher earners with 80 per cent.
Besides, in order to retain employment, the government must effectively provide new training opportunities for workers, especially the younger ones. Online courses can be offered to help develop the workers' skills so that they are more adaptable and can transition quickly to different jobs once normal activity resumes.
During the recovery phase, reduced working hours can be combined with periods of training leave and the use of tailored work-based learning and online courses to maximise the return on training investments.
The provision of such training can be delivered in many ways, including online learning platforms, work-based learning, multi-channelled career guidance and digitally-supported recognition of prior learning.
WAN NAJWA WAN SULAIMAN
Kuala Lumpur
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times