foundit (formerly Monster APAC & ME), one of the leading talent platforms, published the foundit Insights Tracker (fit) for May 2023, previously Monster Employment Index (MEI). According to the fit Report for Malaysia, job roles in the Hospitality and Travel sector have shown impressive growth of 120% over the past year.
fit also reveals a promising year-on-year (YoY) growth of 8%, as the index climbed from 73 in May 2022 to 79 in May 2023. Additionally, a month-on-month (MoM) analysis indicates a notable 6% surge, with an index of 73 recorded in April 2023. The rising index values reveal a thriving labour market that will benefit employers and job seekers alike.
Commenting on Malaysia’s job trends for May 2023, Sekhar Garisa, CEO, foundit, said, “Our findings indicate a strong momentum and a promising future for Malaysia’s labour market. However, in this competitive landscape, companies emphasise individuals with specialised skills. Hence, job seekers must always be aware of the changing demands of the industry and equip themselves with the required skills. Upskilling and continuous learning will be the key to unlocking new opportunities and thriving in this dynamic landscape.”
Hospitality and Retail sectors lead in hiring activity, while the IT, telecom, oil and gas industries witness a drop in recruitment.
The hospitality and retail industries continue to lead the way among steadily growing sectors. The hospitality industry saw a remarkable YoY growth of 102%, owing to Malaysia’s booming tourism. Similarly, the Retail sector (57%) marked noteworthy progress in e-recruitment due to rising retail sales. Being next in the rung, engineering, construction, and real estate industries also witnessed a YoY increase in May 2023 with a 24% rise in hiring activity due to infrastructure developments, government policies, and rapid urbanisation plans of Malaysia.
The IT, Telecom/ISP, and BPO/ITES, along with Oil and Gas industries recorded a substantial deceleration in YoY hiring activity with a decrease of 14% and 7% respectively. This trend can be attributed to the economic slowdown and political uncertainties that lead to reduced investments, and lower demand for services. However, the overall hiring sentiment in Malaysia has been positive with industries such as production/manufacturing, automotive and ancillary (+2%), BFSI (+5%), advertising, market research, public relations, media and entertainment (+14%), and, logistic, courier/freight/transportation, shipping/marine (+18%) showcasing hiring optimism in May 23.
Hospitality & travel, and sales & business development lead the way in hiring trends
In terms of functional roles, hospitality & travel jobs continued to witness significant demand in May 2023, with a staggering YoY growth of 120% driven by international tourism and the holiday season. This economic recovery created an online demand for other job roles, such as Sales & Business Development (28%) and Marketing & Communications (16%) as well. A few of the other job roles that have showcased a robust YoY growth rate include software, hardware & telecom (+3%), engineering/production, real estate (+4%), purchase/logistics/supply chain (+8%), finance & accounts (+8%) and HR & admin (+12%).
The roles in customer service (-33%) registered the steepest monthly as well as annual decline and it was also the only sector to register negative growth among all monitored functions. Several reasons can be attributed to this including the advancements in technology that have led to the implementation of automated customer service systems such as chatbots and self-service portals. There have also been instances during challenging economic times, where businesses need to prioritise cost-cutting measures, resulting in a decrease in hiring across various job roles, including customer service.
The foundit Insights Tracker is a comprehensive monthly analysis of online job posting activity conducted by foundit. Based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large, representative selection of online career outlets, the foundit Insights Tracker (fit) presents a snapshot of employer online recruitment activity nationwide.
Period for the report
The period considered for the foundit Insights Tracker (fit) data is May 2022 Vs May 2023.
