Where's the JOB

[My Malaysiana]

From The Star

Plenty of jobs available

BY GEOFFREY LIP

PETALING JAYA: Plenty of jobs are available for graduates but many cannot fit into the positions because they lack the language and communication skills that their prospective employers are looking for.

Malaysian Employers Federation president Md Jafar Abdul Carrim suggests that these graduates discuss with their prospective bosses about taking up the jobs although they had not been trained for them.

He said a programme to equip graduates with language skills to make them more suitable for employment was needed.

"Many graduates lack the necessary communication skills, like language or presentation ability.

"Graduates should also be interested in applying for jobs they have not been trained for."

Md Jafar said employers want workers who can think well, make good presentations and communicate effectively.

He added that the federation would like to see universities taking steps to ensure their graduates' progress and eventually gain employment.

As regards employers' role, he said they should set up an apprentice programme for those who are not job-ready to get the necessary basic training but, he added, this required government support to provide allowances for trainees and fiscal incentives for employers.

JobsDB Malaysia marketing and business development manager Sangeeta Bai said that just because job seekers had a degree did not mean jobs "would come knocking on their door."

"This attitude must change and job seekers should try to gain as much experience as possible from internships and to learn as much as possible about the types of jobs they are applying for," she said.

She said retraining schemes would help graduates get jobs.

"These will allow them to enter the job market not just with simple qualifications but with some experience as well.

"Not only will the employers be happy as they will be getting candidates with experience but graduates too will be happy as they can enter the job market with a better understanding of what is expected of them," she said.

JobStreet.com chief executive officer Mark Chang said there was a disparity between the skills requirements now and those of 10 years ago for the same jobs.

"Even though the job category is not so different from what it was 10 years ago, the skills requirements are much higher now," he said.

He added that expectations differed between employers and employees and this was why graduates' education needed to match the industry requirements.

"Industries transform and evolve quickly and the education of graduates needs to match this," said Chang, adding that retraining would be good in the short term to equip graduates with the proper skills.

He said he would like to see this retraining conducted by universities.