Acquiring a skilled workforce is one of the major challenges the Malaysian construction sector is facing. As the construction industry in Malaysia relies on labour, shortage of labour will hamper the industry's sustainability. By focusing on demand for high-skilled labour, i.e. professional and technical workers, this study analyses the construction sector's demand for labour according to skills in the short and long runs, and specifically the labour demand of the construction subsectors, particularly the residential building, non-residential building, civil engineering and specialised construction activities subsectors. Furthermore, using the elasticity of labour-output, labour workforce for these two categories are estimated for the years 2015 and 2020. This study uses the Malaysia Construction Industry Survey data from 1990 to 2012 of four subsectors, namely residential buildings, non-residential buildings, civil engineering and specialised construction activities. The findings show that both categories of labour demand have a relationship with its determinant in the short and long runs. However, the supply for professional workers is still lacking, and this shortage is addressed by substitution with technical workers. The need for manpower is higher for technical workers. In addition, the manpower required in 2015 and 2020 are the largest for specialised construction activities due to its larger initial stock and higher output growth.
The extensive use of digital technology and information communication and technology (ICT) under Industry 4.0 will replace many jobs with robotic machines and equipment. Therefore, Industry 4.0 is expected to impact the employment structure and demand for labour, particularly low-skilled workers. This group is considered to be the most vulnerable to losing their jobs. Based on the questionnaire data obtained from fieldwork in Selangor, a total of 377 respondents of low-skilled workers were analysed. This study examines the ICT knowledge and skills of low-skilled workers towards Industry 4.0. The aspects studied are economic, labour market, technological and social. Using the Structured Equation Model (SEM), this study found that all aspects (economics, labour market and technology) are positive and significant in influencing the level of ICT knowledge and skills of employees. On the other hand, the social aspects involving the use of social media and knowledge of cybercrime were found to be insignificant. In conclusion, this study suggests that even though employees realise that ICT knowledge and skills, support from employers, government, colleagues, and others are required to improve their skills, especially to face the challenges in Industry 4.0.
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