EMBARGO: Only to be published or disseminated at
12:00 hour,
Friday, 8 December 2023
MONTHLY PRINCIPAL STATISTICS OF LABOUR FORCE
- The improvement in the number of employed persons continued in October 2023 with a
month-on-month increase of 0.2 per cent (+28.1 thousand persons) to register 16.40 million
persons (September 2023: 16.38 million persons). In October 2023, the employment-topopulation ratio which indicates the ability of an economy to create employment, was unchanged
at 67.7 per cent as in the preceding month.
- In the economic sector, there is a consistent increase in the number of employed persons in the
Services sector, notably in Wholesale & retail trade; Food & beverage services; and
Transportation & storage activities. On the same note, the Manufacturing, Construction, Mining &
quarrying sectors, as well as the Agriculture sector also posted rises in the number of employed
persons in October 2023.
- During the month, the employees’ category which was the largest composition of the total
employed persons with a share of 75.3 per cent, posted a rise of 0.1 per cent or equivalent to
15.0 thousand persons to record 12.35 million persons (September 2023: 12.33 million
persons). Likewise, the own-account workers category continued to increase, with an addition
of 0.4 per cent (+10.8 thousand persons) to 2.99 million persons (September 2023: 2.97 million
persons).
- In October 2023, the number of unemployed persons continued to trend down, with a reduction
of 0.5 per cent or equivalent to 2.8 thousand persons to record 570.9 thousand persons
(September 2023: 573.7 thousand persons). The unemployment rate during the month remained
at 3.4 per cent, as registered last month.
- In October 2023, the number of labour force was in an upward trend, with an addition of
0.1 per cent or 25.3 thousand persons to 16.97 million persons (September 2023: 16.95 million
persons). October’s labour force participation rate (LFPR) stood at 70.1 per cent as of
September 2023.
- The number of outside labour force during the month declined marginally by 0.02 per cent
(-1.3 thousand persons) to 7.24 million persons (September 2023: 7.24 million persons). The
largest composition of the outside labour force was due to housework/ family responsibilities
(42.6%) and the schooling/ training category (40.9%).
The full publication of the Labour Force Report, October 2023 can be downloaded through eStatistik Portal.
Released by:
DEPARTMENT OF STATISTICS MALAYSIA
08 DECEMBER 2023
Baharudin Mohamad
Public Relation Officer
Strategic Communication and International Division
Department of Statistics Malaysia
Tel : +603-8090 4681
Fax : +603-8888 9248
Email : baharudin[at]dosm.gov.my
Copyright ©2026 Department of Statistics Malaysia Official Portal. All Rights Reserved.
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