Malaysian employers more optimistic post-GE14

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian employers are looking at increasing hiring activity and are considering increments this year after the 14th general election (GE14), said online job distribution platform Jobstore.com.

According to its “GE14 Salary Survey Report”, 48% of Malaysian employers have indicated an increase in hiring activity, which is 12% higher than before GE14 while 15% plan to maintain the same hiring level.

In addition to the optimistic outlook, 36% are considering 3%-5% salary increment this year.

Jobstore.com said the growing confidence correlates with an increase in job postings, which rose 11% after GE14, with executive level job postings contributing 5% to the overall growth.

“The key drivers of this sentiment are the rise of the confidence on the economic growth, expansion of local businesses and entry of foreign companies that will lead to job creation and the need for diversified skills,” said Jobstore.com Malaysia’s country manager Carmen Chong.

She said in times of increased hiring activity, employers should look into emerging needs of employees as pull factors to be competitive in talent attraction and retention to gain operational efficiency.

“Essentially, it is important for employers to find a balance between employees’ desired benefits and offered benefits to be able to retain and attract talent, salary increment is just the first step to attract potential talents,” she added.

Employers should offer the right salary to attract the right talents. Beside salary increment, the other top three benefits desired by employees are medical insurance, transportation allowance and retirement fund.