Immigration and Employment Rate: A Case Study in Oil Palm Sabah Plantation Sector

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between immigration and employment rates at oil palm plantation sector in Sabah. Data was collected through Department of Statistics Malaysia, Labour Department, Farmers’ Organization Authority Malaysia, National Achieves of Malaysia, Sabah Agricultural Department, and selected company in oil palm sector over the past 31 years from 1980 until 2010. By using a system equation for employment rate, immigration and wages, the estimation of cointegration relationship shows that, there is long run relationship between immigration, employment rate and wage of local workers at oil palm plantation sector in Sabah. Besides, Granger causality was also conducted and it shows that, there is no relationship between the variable in short run.