NEWS
1 in 2 Malaysian employees overqualified for their jobs
Some findings from global Randstad survey
11 Sept 2012

KUALA LUMPUR | More than half (54%) of employees in Malaysia believe they are overqualified for their current roles, according to the Randstad Workmonitor Report for Q3 2012 released today. The findings were revealed as part of a global survey of 14,780 employees from 32 countries.

The figure is among the highest of Asia Pacific survey respondents. Respondents from other countries in the region, including Australia (46%), Japan (44%), Singapore (43%) and New Zealand (40%), did not believe there was as much of a mismatch between their education and job as Malaysian respondents.


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Director of Randstad Malaysia, Ms Jasmin Kaur said this is a clear signal from employees who believe their skills are underutilised in the workplace.

“This is a worrying finding as people who feel they are overqualified are less likely to be motivated in their roles. They are also more likely to move jobs – either within the country or to overseas opportunities. In the latter case, this could have a flow on effect in intensifying Malaysia’s brain drain,” Ms Kaur said.

The survey of 405 employees in Malaysia also found that 64% of respondents believe there will be a shortage of highly qualified staff within the next three years, and almost half (40%) believe their current employer is not investing sufficiently in additional career training and education.

Ms Kaur continued, “Internal mobility needs to be a priority for Malaysian business leaders. Career development opportunities are proven to help retain and motivate staff. It could be a case of offering employee rotation programmes to provide staff with opportunities to learn new areas of the business, or general training for employees to upskill their current skills.

“It is important to maintain a healthy and productive work environment to keep people challenged and motivated. Those employers who don’t, run the risk of having high employee turnover with a diminishing external talent pool to draw upon,” she said.

The survey also found:

The Randstad Workmonitor was launched in the Netherlands in 2003 and now covers 32 countries around the world, encompassing Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas. The Randstad Workmonitor is published four times a year, making both local and global trends in mobility regularly visible over time.

The Workmonitor Mobility Index, which tracks employee confidence and captures expectations surrounding the likelihood of changing employers within a six month time frame, provides a comprehensive understanding of job market sentiments and employee trends. In addition to measuring mobility, it provides insights into employee satisfaction and personal motivation, as well as explores sentiments around key trends shaping the world of work for employees each quarter.

The quantitative study is conducted via an online questionnaire among a population aged 18-65, working a minimum of 24 hours a week in a paid job (not self-employed). The minimal sample size is 400 interviews per country, using Survey Sampling International. Research for the third wave in 2012 was conducted from 17 July to 15 August, 2012.

Source : Randstad