PUTRAJAYA, Nov 11 — Putrajaya recorded the lowest unemployment rate at 1.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2026, the Malaysian Statistics Department (DOSM) said.
This was followed by Melaka and Selangor at 2.0 per cent each and Pahang at 2.1 per cent.
Its Labour Force Statistics statement for September and the Third Quarter (Q3) of 2026, published today, reported that the national unemployment rate held steady at 3.0 per cent for the quarter, unchanged from the previous quarter.
However, the number of unemployed persons rose 0.8 per cent to 513,700 from 509,700.
The DOSM added that the labour market continues to show positive development, with the labour force rising 0.3 per cent to 17.33 million from 17.28 million in the second quarter of 2026.
"The overall labour force participation rate rose to 71.0 per cent, while the male participation rate increased to 83.4 per cent from 83.3 per cent previously. The female participation rate remained unchanged at 57.0 per cent.
"The number of employed persons rose 0.3 per cent to 16.82 million from 16.77 million in the second quarter, with employees accounting for 76.1 per cent of total employed persons," it said.
The DOSM noted that the employee category rose 0.2 per cent to 12.81 million, while the number of own-account workers increased 0.5 per cent to 2.96 million from 2.94 million in the previous quarter.
It also reported that of the total unemployed in the third quarter, 79.7 per cent, or 409,300 people, were actively unemployed, ready to work and actively seeking jobs, while the remaining 20.3 per cent were inactively unemployed.
By duration of unemployment, 67.3 per cent of the actively unemployed had been jobless for less than three months, while 3.1 per cent were long-term unemployed, having been out of work for more than a year.
Meanwhile, for September 2026, the DOSM reported that the national unemployment rate remained low at 2.9 per cent, unchanged from the previous month, with the number of unemployed persons rising slightly to 513,200 from 511,600 in August.
"Over the same period, the number of employed persons rose 0.1 per cent to 16.89 million from 16.87 million the previous month, as the labour market continued to show stable growth on the back of positive economic prospects," it said.
It recommended that efforts to strengthen the labour market must continue alongside technological developments and economic transformation.
These include expanding artificial intelligence and automation training, helping to redeploy workers affected by technological change, and strengthening early monitoring of at-risk sectors to ensure the local workforce remains skilled, productive, and competitive.
