PETALING JAYA: The labour force in the second quarter of 2024 (Q2 2024) showed a positive trend with a 1.1% increase to 17.15 million persons compared to 16.96 million in the first quarter of this year (Q1 2024).
In a statement, the statistics department said during the same period, the number of employed persons increased by 1.2% to reach 16.59 million compared to 16.4 million persons in the previous quarter.
The number of unemployed persons reduced further by 0.6% to 557,800 persons (Q1 2024: 561,100 persons), recording 3.3% of the unemployment rate in Q2 2024, it said.
Regarding the labour force situation in June, it said the number continued to increase with a month-on-month rise of 0.1% to 17.17 million persons compared to 17.15 million in the previous month.
At the same time, the number of unemployed persons decreased by 0.1% month-on-month to 565,300 compared to 566,100 in May.
According to the statement, the unemployment rate in June remained at 3.3%, with the number of employed persons continuing to increase by 0.2% to record 16.61 million compared to 16.58 million earlier.
“By economic sector, the services sector continued to exhibit increases in the number of employed persons, especially in wholesale and retail trade, food and beverage services, and information and communication activities.
A similar trend of employed persons was also observed in the manufacturing, construction, mining and quarrying, and agriculture sectors, it said.
