PUTRAJAYA – Malaysia’s labour productivity, measured by value-added per employment, fell 5.6% in the third quarter (Q3) this year with a productivity value of RM21,985 per person compared to RM22,128 per person in Q2.
Chief statistician Datuk Seri Mohd Uzir Mahidin in a statement today following the release of the Labour Productivity, Third Quarter 2021 report, said during the quarter, employment increased modestly with a total of 15.3 million individuals compared to 15.2 million in Q2.
In Q3, Malaysia’s economy recorded a contraction, declining by 4.5% – attributed to the downturn in all major economic sectors, he said.
“The total hours worked in Q3 dropped by 3.9% to record 8.2 billion hours, compared with 8.5 billion hours in Q3 last year.
“During this quarter, the total hours worked was lower against a year ago, following stricter containment measures imposed including limited business operation hours, particularly in the first phase of the National Recovery Plan,” he said.
The labour productivity per hour worked in Q3 registered a mild decline of 0.6% with a value of RM40.9 per hour, compared to RM40.5 per hour in Q2, according to the statement.
“From the economic sector point of view, all sectors experienced negative performance of labour productivity by value-added per employment in this quarter,” said Uzir.
“The construction sector posted the biggest drop in labour productivity by 18.8% compared to the previous quarter, while the services sector recorded a decline of 6.2% from the previous quarter, with the largest decrease recorded by the food and beverage, and accommodation sectors,” he said.
On the labour productivity by value-added per hour worked, Uzir said two sectors had turned around in the quarter – mining and quarrying, and manufacturing – while the remaining sectors continued to decrease, albeit smaller. – Bernama, November 18, 2021
