KUALA LUMPUR: Human Resources Minister Steven Sim has dismissed a claim that the underemployment rate among tertiary-educated workers had increased by 100,000 in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024.
He said the actual increase in underemployment was only 10,000 workers, which was an increase of 1.95 million people from 1.94 million in the previous quarter.
"The underemployment rate for the Q3 of 2024 is 36.8 per cent. This represents an improvement compared with 37.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2023.
"The statement by the Alor Setar member of parliament that underemployment related to skills amounts to 1.95 million people, an increase of 100,000 people compared with 1.94 million in the previous quarter, is inaccurate.
"The actual increase in underemployment data is only 10,000 people in the Q3 of 2024 compared with the previous quarter," Sim told the Dewan Rakyat.
He was responding to a question from Afnan Hamimi Taib Azamudden (PN-Alor Setar), who had asked about the government's efforts in addressing the 1.95 million highly educated workers in Malaysia employed in low-skilled jobs, with an increase of approximately 100,000 workers compared with the previous quarter.
Sim added that graduates undergoing industrial training will have their employability enhanced through a structured internship programme, compared with the past when they were often assigned trivial tasks like photocopying or making coffee.
He said the Practical Training Incentives (Ilham) was a key strategic approach to empowering the skills of the graduates in this category as 40 per cent of trainees who underwent training under Ilham successfully secured employment at the same companies where they had completed their industrial training.
Sim added that by considering the programme's achievement, the ministry plans to extend the internship period from three months to nine months to expose trainees to real work situations.
"Another collaboration between the Human Resources Ministry (Kesuma) and Higher Education Ministry (KPT) is the Ilham Kesuma project. Through collaboration with universities, we offer structured training or internship programmes.
"So, interns do not just go to work as interns to carry bags and make coffee. The programme is structured because they truly learn specific skills 'on the job' and are paid.
"They are paid not to undergo industrial training for free. Under this Ilham programme, we aim to offer more than 20,000 to 30,000 internship opportunities to students.
"Currently, the internship lasts three months, and we are in discussions with universities to extend the industrial training period," he said.