Bank Negara Malaysia says the uneven recovery continues to impact vulnerable groups such as women, youth and low-skilled workers. – The Malaysian Insight file pic, April 2, 2023.
Nevertheless, the central bank said Malaysia’s labour market is still some way away from tightness, that is high labour utilisation. BNM said there is some room for salaries and wages, and, therefore, the income of Malaysian workers would increase before exerting significant pressure on prices. The central bank said to support monetary policy considerations, the pandemic necessitated the expansion of its surveillance tools in assessing labour market conditions.
“A sustainable recovery has a higher chance of being more enduring when it is further facilitated by complementary structural reforms,” it said.BNM opined the pandemic represented a critical turning point and an opportunity to address structural issues inhibiting the Malaysian labour market since before the crisis.
Economic policies, therefore, BNM said, should be geared towards creating high-skilled and high-paying jobs through quality investments, developing a dynamic and high-calibre workforce, accelerating the adoption of technology and digitalisation, and strengthening the social protection system.