HRDF WORKS TO REDUCE JOBLESSNESS
1MOC set up to enhance employability of Malaysian workforce
IN February 2017, Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot Jaem said that a total of 37,699 workers lost their jobs last year, of which 39.4% was via the voluntary separation scheme (VSS) while the rest of the 60.6% were laid off.
In view of the urgent need to increase workforce employability, the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF), with the support of the Ministry of Human Resources (MoHR), is continuing its efforts to drive effective implementation of various productivity-enhancing programmes for employees.
Under the Third Priority: Empowering Human Capital in the 2016 budget presentation, HRDF was mandated to implement human capital strategic initiatives to meet the needs of local industries in Sabah and Sarawak as well as set up an outplacement centre to retain retrenched Malaysian workforce.
The 1Malaysia Outplacement Centre (1MOC) was introduced in the same year to reduce the nation’s unemployment rate, which is currently at 3.4%.
HRDF chief executive Datuk CM Vignaesvaran Jeyandran said the 1MOC was established as a one-stop centre to enhance the employability of Malaysia’s active and latent workforce.
“The initiative is designed to achieve this objective by equipping individuals with industrial skills and qualifications that will allow them to be re-employed or venture into self-sufficient business activities.”
In doing so, Vignaesvaran said they hoped to reduce the burden of retrenched workers by helping them to secure employment within similar or different industries.
“This one-stop hub provides advisory support on career counselling and planning, job applications and matching, and is open to all Malaysian workers that have been retrenched by Malaysian employers,” he said, adding that 1MOC’s services are free.
However, he said the training part under 1MOC is only available for Malaysian workers who have been retrenched by HRDF registered employers and industries covered under PSMB Act 2001.
“Employees that were terminated due to disciplinary actions by their employers are not eligible for the services,” stressed Vignaesvaran.
HRDF will continue its mandate of catalysing the development of a competent Malaysian workforce that is effective, efficient, product and innovative.
“We want to achieve the end goal of creating a 35% skilled Malaysian workforce and becoming an advanced and inclusive nation by 2020,” Vignaesvaran shared.
As of last month, there were over 2,400 successful placements through 1MOC.
As the only initiative in the country that focuses on bringing back retrenched workers to the workforce, 1MOC offers services through its official portal and mobile application to strategically approach their target market.
“I was at one of the Kembara Kerjaya by MoHR in Sarawak and I saw a long queue of people waiting to be interviewed; some of them were retrenched due to their companies closing down.
“This is one of the things that keeps us doing what we’re doing, which is to help the rakyat,” said Vignaesvaran.
1MOC portal not only works to the advantage of retrenched workers looking for a job, but also helps employers who are looking for experienced workers.
To date, there are 722 employers and 4,582 retrenched workers registered under the 1MOC portal.
Despite that, he said they do not release the workers back into the workforce without first preparing them.
“For those who have been retrenched by HRDF registered employers and 63 subsectors covered under the Pembangunan Sumber Manusia Berhad Act 2001, they are welcomed to apply for training and counselling from 1MOC.”
For those retrenched and do not fall under those categories, 1MOC is happy to help them re-enter the workforce through the services offered in the 1MOC portal and mobile application.
The types of courses offered are mainly focused on enhancing the skills and knowledge of current workers to match the skills required for specific jobs available in the market, and subsequently improving their employability.
Skill gap assessment tools are performed on each of the retrenched workers to determine the relevance of training courses with the job offered by employers.
1MOC is pivotal in the upskilling of the Malaysian workforce, especially for those who have no financial means to gain access for training.
“Training is expensive, it’s even more of a burden for retrenched workers who are not from sectors covered under the PSMB Act 2001,” Vignaesvaran noted.
He added that almost 65% of Malaysians do not have access to a structured training budget, and they pay on their own for train- ing or do not train at all.
With effect from April 1, the PSMB Act 2001 has been revised whereby employers from the manufacturing, services, as well as mining and quarrying sectors with five to nine local employees can register with HRDF.
Prior to this, it was only compulsory for employers with 10 or more local employees to register.
“If we are not equipped and we don’t train our staff, we will become obsolete,” Vignaesvaran said.
The current PSMB Act 2001 cover 63 subsectors which has close to 20,000 Malaysian employers with over two million local employees.
In the 11th Malaysia Plan, HRDF is targeted to implement the expansion of the PSMB Act 2001 to cover 2.8 million local employees in the year 2020.
For more details on 1MOC, visit www.1moutplacement.com or contact 1moc@hrdf.com.my
The 1MOC mobile app is available on
Google Play and App Store.