“While previous surveys named poor English as the main cause of unemployment, bad attitude has now topped the list”

“While previous surveys named poor English as the main cause of unemployment, bad attitude has now topped the list”


Malaysian grads unemployed due to “bad attitude”

Malaysia – The number of jobless graduates in Malaysia stands at 71,000 and will continue rising due to their “bad attitude” and unrealistic salary expectations.

A survey by Jobstreet.com in Malaysia found that more than half of the Malaysian employers polled said fresh graduates had “unrealistic” pay expectations. A government survey in 2008 also reported that graduates were unwilling to take on jobs they deemed dirty, difficult or dangerous.

“While previous surveys named poor English as the main cause of unemployment, bad attitude has now topped the list,” Suresh Thiru, chief operating officer of Jobstreet.com, said.

Furthermore, the number of jobless graduates has gone up despite a drop in the overall unemployment rate. According to the Straits Times, one in every five of Malaysia’s 388,000 unemployed resident holds either a diploma or degree. More than 300,000 graduates from universities and training institutes enter the local workforce each year.

The Malaysian government and local universities have been providing these graduates with training that will equip them with skills needed to secure employment. About 2,700 people have been placed in state agencies, with additional training given to help them start their own businesses.

Sidek Baba, an education specialist with the International Islamic University of Malaysia, said large government-linked organisations can also help by providing more training schemes for graduates.

Malaysian newspaper The Star added another reason why young graduates could not find jobs was because they do not know the employers’ requirements. It suggested that graduates who participate in the training initiatives provided will see “some hope on the horizon”.

Unemployed graduates, however, are not blaming themselves for the lack of jobs. Many claim there are insufficient jobs in the country, or that the salaries offered are not enough to support the cost of living in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.

To back that up, the availability of graduate-level job postings on the government’s recruitment website JobsMalaysia is far and few between, with most hiring activities coming from manufacturing, agriculture and construction sectors.

A recent London-based Economist Intelligence Unit study said the cost of living in Kuala Lumpur has risen by nearly 25% over the last two years. It is currently the 86th most expensive city in the world.