PETALING JAYA: It’s not the salary that keeps Malaysians away from 3D (dangerous, dirty and difficult) jobs, but the lack of social acceptance, according to the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF).
Its executive director Datuk Shamsuddin Bardan said it is necessary that such menial jobs be enriched and rebranded to attract more locals, particularly the youth.
He said this was also particularly important if the country wishes to reduce its reliance on foreign labour.
“It is definitely not about the wages, but it’s a matter of social acceptance,” he told theSun yesterday.
“Take restaurants for example, where we have cooks. If we rebrand the job titles to chef and head chefs, more would want to join.
“Security guards are another example. If we can enrich the job, train them for emergency response and first aid, and make it a certified job, it will surely attract more locals. This will give them a sense of pride.”
Shamsuddin was commenting on a column written by Deputy Defence Minister Liew Chin Tong that the country’s labour market structure was not sustainable, claiming wage growth had been outstripped by inflation.
Liew said low salary is a push factor for many Malaysians to seek employment in Singapore, where they can earn more than double doing the same job compared to here.
He had also blamed the presence of documented and undocumented foreign workers in the labour market for driving wages down.
Shamsuddin, however, said wage hikes should be consistent with productivity growth, which Malaysia lacked.
He said if employers were to increase staff salaries which exceeded productivity in a bid to attract more locals, it would add to the cost of doing business.
“And if faced with such a situation, employers will have no choice but to reduce their workforce. This too will not help the labour market.”
Shamsuddin said government policies should encourage employers not to retrench their staff, particularly locals, regardless of whether they hire foreigners.
Asked about how the 3D industry could further reduce its reliance on foreign labour, Shamsuddin said apart from rebranding it, more money should also be invested in automation.
He said the government should also return part of the levy imposed on foreign workers to employers for this purpose.
“This money can be used to set up an ‘automation fund’. So once companies adopt automation and better technology, they don’t need to hire too many low-skilled foreign workers.”
