Are Jobs Available in the Market? A Perspective from the Supply Side

Abstract

Graduate unemployment exhibits a clear increasing global trend, and Malaysia is no exception. The unemployment rate among graduates is witnessing a considerable upsurge, growing from 43,800 in 2000 (15% of total unemployed) to more than 175,500 in 2017 (35%). Numerous programmes have been implemented in order to secure jobs for the unemployed in the labour market; however, the number of unemployed graduates keeps on increasing. It is significant to recognise the main reason behind this issue to tackle the risk of long-term unemployment, specifically from the supply side. Using the Relative Importance Index (RII), this study investigated 402 respondents at selected job fairs to identify the cause of their difficulty in entering the labour market. The findings revealed that the unemployed people believe that the principal cause of their unemployment is the lack of suitable jobs for them in the market. This circumstance sends a signal of asymmetric information between demand and supply in the labour market, especially to young graduates.

The expectations of employability skills in the Fourth Industrial Revolution of the communication and media industry in Malaysia

“…The university needs to get the recent data in preparing the students not only for the workplace but also equipping students with the latest technology such as It is widely known that fresh graduates are still lacking experience but at the same time insisted on having good remuneration as they went for interviews; however, instead of criticizsing the young graduates for "asking unrealistic wages" and being "too selective about jobs", the report from Khazanah Research Institute (KRI) revealed that the actual monthly income sought was RM1,846.00 (USD400.00) for young workers, and many youths were taking jobs that did not fit their level of education (Khazanah Research Institute, 2018). Another latest finding discovered that wages, location, education, and soft-skill mismatches were among the four reasons that contribute to graduate unemployment in Malaysia (Jamaludin et al, 2021). Despite the government initiatives to address these issues through the National Economic Recovery Plan (PENJANA), the unemployment rate will continue to rise unless the education and soft skills mismatches are addressed, lessening doubts about the human capital theory's veracity.…”

“…Based on our analysed interview findings, the challenges for higher education institutions include not only preparing a revised curriculum document annually in delivering "workready" or "industry-ready" graduates but also equipping them with the skills on how human and social capital can be strategically deployed (network with professionals) as well as strategies to assist them to become resilient to labour market challenges (Barkas et al, 2020;Hardin-Ramanan et al, 2020;Jamaludin et al, 2021;Tomlinson, 2017). In doing so, current university programs, however, do not need to oversell job prospects (Barkas et al, 2020) or forsake discipline expertise (Collet et al, 2015) because basic conceptual and technical knowledge remains the most important criterion for employers in these fields.…”

“…It is widely known that fresh graduates are still lacking experience but at the same time insisted on having good remuneration as they went for interviews; however, instead of criticizsing the young graduates for “asking unrealistic wages” and being “too selective about jobs”, the report from Khazanah Research Institute (KRI) revealed that the actual monthly income sought was RM1,846.00 (USD400.00) for young workers, and many youths were taking jobs that did not fit their level of education (Khazanah Research Institute, 2018). Another latest finding discovered that wages, location, education, and soft-skill mismatches were among the four reasons that contribute to graduate unemployment in Malaysia (Jamaludin et al. , 2021).…”

Skills Acquisition and Employability Among Arts and Social Sciences Interns in a Malaysian Public University

“…The MOHE-GTS done in 2017 revealed that a total of 669,200 or 20.7% of total graduate employment was found in non-graduate occupations, resulting in incidences of education mismatch (Darusaman, 2020). More recent studies also highlight inadequate employability skills and job mismatch as reasons for graduate unemployment (Kadir et al, 2020;Jamaludin et al, 2021).…”

The Effects of Thinking Styles and Inventive Problem-Solving on the Problem-Solving Skills for Design and Technology Students

“…However, the issue that arises now is the marketability of graduates after graduation (Bikar et al, 2023). There have been many previous studies such Nadarajah (2021); Mohd et al (2020); Jamaludin et al (2021) who emphasized the reasons why Malaysian graduates do not find a place in the market. More sadly, most studies show graduates' weakness in problem-solving skills which is the main reason why graduates are not employed (Fajaryati & Akhyar, 2020;Haron et al, 2021;Açıkgöz et al, 2022;Salahuddin et al, 2023) At the same time, the results of the TIMMS (Trend in International Mathematics and Science Study) and PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) benchmark studies show that the level of achievement of Malaysian students is at a low level (Egan et al, 2022) has caused the government to take several actions follow up.…”