By Yasmin Ramlan
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 9 — Increasing workforce inclusion by integrating more women and older generations is vital for the economy, said World Bank senior economist Shakira Teh Sharifuddin.
She said there is a need to acknowledge and appreciate the skills and experiences of older workers while tackling age discrimination.
“We have evidence showing employers do want to hire the older generation, but the challenge that they face is discrimination. As such, there should be measures in place that promote anti-discrimination in the workplace.
“We also need to increase the minimum retirement age and introduce a flexible retirement age to bring in more senior and elderly into the workforce,” Shakira said at athe forum ‘Addressing Malaysia’s Talent Gap’, in conjunction with the Malaysia Economic Forum at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre today.
She added that workers aged 40 and above make up only 40 per cent of Malaysia’s workforce — a figure Shakira described as significantly low.
“It is understandable this is a very complex and sensitive issue, but we can be inclusive for older generations by giving them the opportunity to work if they want to and, most importantly, respecting their skills, experience and personal circumstances,” she said.
Shakira also stressed the importance of high women participation in the workforce.
“The Madani Economy framework set a target of 60 per cent female labour force participation by this year. But as I said, it has to go beyond broad target representation. If you look deeper into the numbers, they are actually quite high.
“There are a lot of working women in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor and Putrajaya — much higher than 60 per cent and it is comparable with advanced economies,” she said.
However, female labor force participation nationwide currently stands at 56 per cent, highlighting the need to increase opportunities for women without exploiting them by, among others, underpaying or placing unfair expectations.
Instead, Shakira urged for better protection of women’s dignity and rights, and ensuring fair treatment at workplace.
Commenting on underemployment, particularly among graduates, she said that Malaysia’s underemployment rate has risen from 27 per cent in 2010 to 37 per cent today, with the majority concerning degree holders.
Shakira shared that the supply of graduates has outpaced the creation of graduate-level jobs, with only about 50,000 new graduate-level positions created annually, calling for urgent action to bridge the gap.
