Aliran pekerjaan dalam sektor pembuatan di Malaysia: Kesan buruh asing dan inovasi

Job flows comprising of job creation, job destruction, and job reallocation is one of the important elements of the labour market. By far, discussion on labour market had given much emphasis on issues pertaining to unemployment as opposed to job flows. In Malaysia, the labour market conditions are often associated with the influx of foreign labours and innovation. Over reliance on foreign labour had caused job creation problems in Malaysia, particularly in high-skilled jobs. Whilst innovation could lead to destruction of jobs when production is labour intensive, and in turn increases unemployment. Besides, the lack of labour theory related to job reallocation makes the determining factor unidentifiable. Therefore, this study investigates the pattern of job flows in Malaysia’s labour market by analysing the impact of foreign labour on job creation and the impact of innovation on job destruction. The study also analyses the factors that could influence job reallocation. Based on a descriptive analysis of panel data for the Malaysian manufacturing sector which consists of 54 sub-sectors of the industry group for a period of 10 years (2005-2015), it is observed that job creation, job destruction and job reallocation show a dynamic pattern. Employing the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) the study found that foreign labour positively and significantly affects job creation. Meanwhile, innovation accounted for 0.07 per cent on job destruction. The study also indicates that output, wages, capital, innovation, lag innovation and foreign labour were among the factors impacting job reallocation in Malaysia’s labour market. The study concludes that, the recruitment policy of foreign labour needs to be reviewed in order to reduce the reliance on foreign labour. In addressing job destruction problem, it is strongly encouraged for labour to be self-employed besides promoting the expansion of gig economy. The government should continue job engagement program to boost job reallocation.