Table 6 and Figure 8). In 1987, 30.9 percent of aggregate employment was in agriculture. In the same year, 21 percent and 18.2 percent of employment was in other services and trade services, respectively. The services sector as a whole accounted for 47.4 percent of employment. By 2018, the structure of employment in Malaysia had changed dramatically. The share of employment in agriculture had fallen by more than 20 percentage points, to 10.6 percent. In contrast, at 63.3 percent the services sector accounted for a much larger share of aggregate employment. The largest relative gain in employment happened in trade services and other services. In addition to services, the share of employment in the manufacturing sector among aggregate employment also increased, though a comparison between its share in 1987 with that in 2018 hides a more complicated picture. In fact, the share grew from 15.5 percent in 1987 to 23.4 percent in 1997, equivalent to an average annual growth rate in manufacturing employment of 9.4 percent. However, employment growth in the manufacturing sector slowed down after 1997, and the share of employment in manufacturing declined to 18.8 percent in 2007 and 16.9 percent in 2018 – only 1.4 percentage points higher than where it had stood in 1987.

**Figure 8: Sectoral share of employment, 19872018**

**Figure 9: Average annual growth in share of employment (%), 1987-2018**

|20<br>40<br>60<br>80<br>100<br>Share of employment (%)||-2<br>0<br>2<br>4<br>6<br>8<br>10<br>e<br>g<br><br><br>ual growth in employment<br>(%)|s|
|---|---|---|---|
|0<br>1987<br>Agr|1989<br>1992<br>1995<br>1997<br>1999<br>2001<br>2003<br>2005<br>2007<br>2009<br>2011<br>2013<br>2015<br>2017<br>iculture<br>Mining<br>Manufacturing|Agricultur<br>Minin<br>Manufacturing<br>Construction<br>Average ann|Service|
|Co<br>Bus|nstruction<br>Trade<br>Transport<br>iness<br>Other|1987-1997<br>1997-2007<br>2007-2018<br>1|987-2018|
|Source: Aut|hors’ calculations based on data from DOSM|Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from D|OSM|
|**Table 7: A**|**verage annual growth in employment**<br>**Average annual growth in employme**|**by sector, 1987-2018**<br>**nt (%)**<br>**Average annual growth in empl**<br>**(excluding crisisyears)**<sup>**♠**</sup> **(**|**oyment**<br>**%)**|
||**1987-1997**<br>**1997-2007**<br>**2007-2018**|1987-2018<br>**1987-1997**<br>**1997-2007**<br>**2007-2018**|1987-2018|
|Agriculture|<br>-1.1<br>0.6<br>0.4|_0.1_<br>1.1<br>1.2<br>0.4|_0.7_|
|Mining|5.5<br>1.9<br>8.9|_5.6_<br>0.8<br>1.0<br>5.2|_3.3_|
|Manufactur|ing<br>9.4<br>0.0<br>2.3|_3.0_<br>9.6<br>0.4<br>1.4|_4.1_|
|Constructio|n<br>9.8<br>1.7<br>2.9|_4.0_<br>6.5<br>0.6<br>1.9|_3.1_|
|Trade|4.5<br>4.7<br>4.5|_4.6_<br>5.3<br>3.6<br>4.8|_4.7_|
|Transport|6.9<br>2.5<br>5.1|_4.6_<br>6.6<br>3.0<br>2.5|_4.1_|
|Business|6.6<br>6.8<br>0.0|_3.9_<br>5.6<br>6.5<br>3.4|_4.5_|
|Other|5.2<br>2.1<br>4.8|_3.9_<br>5.2<br>3.2<br>3.2|_3.7_|
|_Aggregate_|_4.7_<br>_2.1_<br>_3.1_|_3.1_<br>_5.0_<br>_2.3_<br>_2.7_|_3.3_|

Source: Authors’ calculations based on data from DOSM Note:<sup>**♠**</sup> The excluded years are 1997-1999, 2001-2003, and 2008-2010 Among the different periods from 1987 to 2018 considered by this study, the average annual growth in employment was the highest in the period between 1987 and 1997, both in the aggregate and for all sectors – 13