“This year’s results also confirmed that Malaysians are increasingly placing more importance on ‘work-life balance’...”
Amid full employment scenario, companies now competing against each other for talent, says Ranstad
RYAN CARROLL, Randstad Malaysia country director
EMPLOYEES and job seekers in Malaysia have ranked “attractive salary and benefits” as the most important consideration when seeking an ideal employer, said multinational human resource consulting company, Randstad.
The Employer Brand Research study also highlighted that women ranked “attractive salary and benefits” as more important compared with men. Meanwhile, the most attractive sectors are oil and gas as well as transportation and logistics.
Randstad Malaysia country director Ryan Carroll said with the jobless rate below four per cent, the country was operating at full employment, indicating that companies were competing against each other for talent.
“This year’s results also confirmed that Malaysians are increasingly placing more importance on ‘work-life balance’, indicating that employers should start offering progressive initiatives to help employees be healthier and more productive at work,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Commissioned by Randstad and conducted independently, the research is the most representative employer brand research that measures the perception of the country’s largest commercial employers (by workforce size). It captured the views of 3,308 employees and job seekers in Malaysia aged between 18 and 65.
“The Employer Brand Research provides a comprehensive year-on-year analysis of workforce trends and the public’s perception of the employer brand to help companies formulate their attraction and retention strategies,” Carroll added.
The research revealed that almost seven out of every 10 employees and job seekers said “attractive salary and benefits” was the No. 1 must-have criterion, followed by “work-life balance” (49 per cent) and “career progression” (40 per cent).
The study showed expectations of an “attractive salary and benefits” also increased to 68 per cent this year from 63 per cent last year.
“This upward trend suggests that employees and job seekers in Malaysia might be prioritising salary to meet the higher cost of living and as a security buffer due to the potential uncertainties around the local economic and political landscape,” the recruitment agency added.
The research stated that employees’ expectations on “work-life balance” in Malaysia had increased steadily since 2016 to 49 per cent this year.
Employers have also started recognising and investing in “work-life balance” initiatives to appeal to job seekers who wanted more than financial remuneration.
The report revealed that the most common reason employees chose to leave their current company was due to a lack of career progression opportunities.
“Out of the 37 per cent of respondents who said they planned to leave their current employers, 44 per cent cited ‘limited career paths’ as the key reason, followed by ‘insufficient compensation’ (41 per cent) and ‘work-life balance issues’ (31 per cent).”