Recent attacks on the lack of drive amongst fresh graduates to find suitable jobs have brought me to come forward and share my thoughts. I am 24 years old. I hold a Law degree from one of our local public universities.
Over the past 12 months I have been fortunate enough to secure not just one, but five different kind of jobs. I have attended more than 70 job interviews and I can speak from my heart about the reality of the so-called working world.
The truth is that the mentality of Malaysian employers is that anything or everything that comes from Western countries is the best. Some will not be shy to advertise that only foreign graduates may apply for a vacancy. This, of course, will discourage local graduate from applying for the same position and hence would result in another 20,000 fresh graduates being jobless for many months.
In Malaysia, the reality is also that private sector employers have a racial slant when it come to hiring. The truth is that 85 percent of the private companies in Malaysia are controlled or managed by one community. Therefore, it must come as no surprise that there is a tendency to hire candidates based on race.
Another factor is that it has become part of the Malaysian culture to rely on one's family or business connections to ensure that one's son or daughter would be able to land a decent job. If you come from a normal or average middle class family (without 'high connections') your chances to secure a job can be reduced up to 50 percent or more.
Working with government has become another avenue for fresh graduates to start their working life. Attractive remuneration scheme, five-day week, competitive starting salary, government allowances, sense of respect coupled with a sense of authority, flexible tea-break hours are all very nice.
However, the biggest challenge is that the Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Awam (SPA) and the Suruhanjaya Perkhidmatan Negeri (SPN) are taking their own sweet time to process the applications from candidates. Some applications can be in the 'processing' status for more than a year.
Another factor is that employers place undue importance on good grades. School and university grades matter the most. Not the person's ability or potential which is always placed in second spot.
So what is the fate of our local graduates? Sons of prominent politicians, highly-connected families with power and money, overseas graduates and candidates from one particular community will always have a definite advantage.
These are points to ponder for all individuals who call themselves Malaysians. Please be reminded that all of you might have once been a fresh graduate. Don't forget about who we were once.
