Establishing the Malaysia Jobs Coalition

Nation Building School is will be the Secretariat for the Malaysia Jobs Coalition. To express your interest, please register here.

Malaysia Jobs Coalition (MJC) champions a job for every Malaysian.

We advocate the right to work the same way we have the right to education and healthcare. MJC is an independent coalition of progressive civil society organisations, social enterprises and citizens. 
We focus on achieving full employment (or zero unemployment), promoting decent work and tackling underemployment and youth unemployment. We intend to collaborate with the Government, private sector, trade unions and marginalised groups (e.g. Orang Asli, OKU, former convicts, military veterans, single mothers).

Problem Statement (Why do we need to exist?)

1. Low-Paying Jobs: One of the most critical issues for people is jobs and their livelihoods. Long before the pandemic, skills mismatch has plagued the labour market: over 70% of the jobs are low-skilled and semi-skilled, coupled with wage stagnation. The market is not ready to provide high-skilled and high-paying jobs. 
2. Underemployment and Youth Unemployment Crisis: The pandemic has worsened with over 2.4 million Malaysians underemployed with most of them involved in the gig economy. Youth unemployment remains above 10% – triple the national unemployment rate! The Government’s response, such as JaminKerja and employment incentives, do little to tackle the root causes and long-term problems. 
3. Conversation dominated by “Experts”: Media reporting on employment is always dominated by economists and analysts using complex and technical terms. This makes it difficult for people to better understand and contribute to the discourse. 

• Thus, MJC intends to make the discussion on jobs accessible to all people while working with stakeholders to address these key issues.

Aims (What are we trying to achieve?)

1. Achieve full employment through progressive economic policy that boosts employment, wages and job quality
2. ​Promote decent work for all Malaysians, especially in having productive work, fair income, a safe environment, and social protection;
3. Address youth unemployment and underemployment crisis affecting over 2.4 million Malaysians in low-skilled and gig jobs;
4. ​Monitor government policies on employment from its development to implementation, identify potential gaps, outline areas for improvements and hold the government accountable.

Initiatives (How are going to actualise our aims?)

1. Media statements
2. Public surveys
3. Consultation with stakeholders (e.g. Ministry of Human Resources, Malaysian Trades Union Congress - MTUC, Malaysian Employers Federation - MEF)
4. Engagements with policymakers (e.g. Members of Parliament, political parties) and relevant organisations
5. Capacity-building programmes for unemployed persons and groups

Steering Committee – to steer the organisation by setting the overall strategic direction

• Co-Chairs (2x)
• Steering Committee Members (3x)

Secretariat – to initiate, advise, coordinate and implement the organisation’s activities  

• Administration
• Liaison and Membership
• Media

Email contact: myjobscoalition@gmail.com