THE Malaysian job market recorded a 31% growth in job demand in June, according to an employment index, indicating a spree in hiring activity on an annual basis.
The Monster Employment Index, which regularly monitors online job posting activities for Monster Asia Pacific (APAC) and Middle East, indicates that several segments that was hit hardest by COVID-19 have shown promising signs of resurgence.
An upsurge of 15% was registered for hiring activity over the last six months, while month-on-month (mom) growth improved at 5%, projecting a continuous demand in the job market.
“Despite two years of restriction on public activities, rising prices and the current labour crisis, the retail industry in Malaysia has moved towards recovery with a 321% year-on-year (yoy) growth in job activity in June 2022,” Monster APAC & Middle East said in a recent media statement.
Moreover, retail sales in the country are projected to grow at the rate of 25.7% in the current quarter, as per data from Malaysian retail associations, the online career and recruitment resource outfit added.
“While the country has seen a number of retail closures over the pandemic, consumer sentiments soar high, showcasing a positive outlook for this segment in the months to come.
“Companies today are ramping up their demand for a digital-first, future-ready workforce, amidst the ongoing talent crunch we see globally,” commented Monster.com (APAC & Gulf) CEO Sekhar Garisa on job trends for June 2022.
Almost back to pre-pandemic days
“Jobs in Malaysia have come back and several industries have begun to almost reflect pre-pandemic business functioning with steadfast recovery, especially across deeply impacted segments like tourism, hospitality and retail.
“With flexible work arrangements are gaining popularity in the job market, we are optimistic to see continued growth and resilience in the coming months,” she added.
Following retail, the hospitality segment (up 65%) has also seen a huge inflow of demand for professionals in tourism and travel-related industries, with the user penetration rate nearing the pre-pandemic levels, according to Monster APAC & Middle East.
With improved business sentiments and airline travel ramping up, the group observed that tourism in Malaysia has clearly picked up, accompanied by the consequent rise in demand for skilled talent.
“Logistic, courier/freight/transportation and shipping/marine also noted a huge jump (+51%) in hiring activity, being next in the rung, followed by rapid digitisation in banking, financial services and insurance (+32%),” Monster APAC & Middle East noted.
Other sectors that noted promising growth in June include production/manufacturing, automotive and ancillary (+4%), IT, telecom/internet service providers and business process outsourcing/information technology-enabled services (+5%).
Meanwhile, advertising, market research, public relations, media and entertainment went up by 16%, as did engineering, construction and real estate, which shot up 19%. – July 18, 2022
