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Malaysia — Labor participation
Labor Force Participation Rate for Malaysia, 1990–2025.
Latest value · 2025
66.12%
Labor Force Participation Rate · % of population ages 15+ · +17.5% since 1990
Labor participation for Malaysia was 66.12% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 36 years, from 1990 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 66.22% in 2022. The lowest was 56.28% in 1990 (about 1.2× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to 0.46% per year.
Malaysia ranks 52 of 187 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 28%. The median for East Asia & Pacific is 64.35%, so Malaysia sits above it. It peaked in 2022 and has fallen 0% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved up 1%.
Key figures
Latest (2025)
66.12%
First (1990)
56.28%
Change
+17.5%
Highest
66.22%
in 2022
Lowest
56.28%
in 1990
Average
61.59%
Annual growth (CAGR)
0.46%
Years of data
36
Recent years
| Year | % of population ages 15+ |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 66.12% |
| 2024 | 66.11% |
| 2023 | 66.18% |
| 2022 | 66.22% |
| 2021 | 65.62% |
| 2020 | 65.47% |
| 2019 | 65.87% |
| 2018 | 65.57% |
| 2017 | 65.2% |
| 2016 | 65.09% |
| 2015 | 65.19% |
| 2014 | 64.96% |
Reading this correctly. Proportion of the population aged 15 and above that is economically active: supplying labor for the production of goods and services. Figures are in % of population ages 15+. Comparing this series with a different measure of the same concept (for example a nominal figure against a purchasing-power-parity figure) will give misleading results.
Related data
Source. World Bank Open Data, indicator
SL.TLF.CACT.ZS — Labor Force Participation Rate. Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.