PUTRAJAYA: The unemployment rate declined to 3.2% while the number of graduates increased to 5.98 million in 2024, according to the 2024 Graduates Statistics released by the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) on Saturday (Nov 1).
Chief Statistician Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said the graduate unemployment rate declined by 0.2% compared to 3.4% in the previous year.
"Consequently, the number of unemployed graduates decreased by 0.8% to 165,900 in 2024, from 167,300 in 2023.
"A more positive trend was observed among active job-seeking graduates, with 61.1% securing employment within three months," he said in a statement.
Mohd Uzir said in 2024, the number of employed graduates grew by 4.6% to 4.98 million compared to 4.76 million in 2023, in tandem with Malaysia’s improving labour market.
In line with the Madani Government's commitment to strengthening graduate employability, Mohd Uzir said various initiatives have been introduced under Budget 2024.
"These initiatives reflect the government's continuous efforts in empowering a high-knowledge workforce, in line with the nation's aspiration towards a high-income and innovation-driven economy,” he said.
He said the positive economic and labour market environment throughout 2024 contributed to an increase in the number of graduates, accounting for 22.3% of the working-age population aged 15 years and above.
"Year-on-year, the number of degree graduates in the labour force rose by 5.4%, while diploma holders increased by 3.2%, driven by better job opportunities and lower unemployment rates,” he said.
The number of graduates employed below their qualifications increased by 3.9% to 1.60 million people, bringing the graduate skill-related underemployment rate down to 32.2%.
"This achievement places Malaysia ahead of countries such as South Korea (36.8%), Indonesia (42.2%), and the Philippines (56.7%), demonstrating efforts to reduce skill mismatch.
"Although Malaysia still trails advanced economies such as the United Kingdom (28.5%), the United States (27.3%), and Australia (27.5%), the downward trend indicated potential for further improvement in the coming years," he said.
Meanwhile, graduate salaries continued to rise in 2024, with the median monthly salary and wage increasing by 2.5% to RM4,521 (2023: RM4,409), while the mean salary rose by 8.1% to RM5,330 (2023: RM4,933).
"All states recorded positive growth in both median and mean monthly graduate salaries in 2024 compared to the previous year. The three states with the highest median graduate salaries were Kuala Lumpur (RM5,888), followed by Putrajaya (RM5,723) and Selangor (RM5,207),” he said. — Bernama
