Employers in Malaysia boost headcount in Q4

Following the introduction of a new job portal in the country, a new report has found more companies in Malaysia are hiring in the last quarter of the year.

After surveying 253 local employers, JobStreet.com’s Job Outlook Survey for Q4 2014 found 41% of bosses plan to increase their headcount between October and December this year. The figure was an 11% increase from the same period in 2014.

Close to three out of 10 (27%) employers also said they will mainly hire for replacement purposes, while 24% said they wanted to maintain their present hiring rate.

Only 7% of bosses stated they would hire less manpower in the last quarter of 2014.

Sales was cited as the top specialisation in demand (35%), followed by sales/accounting (32%) and marketing (20%).

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The report highlighted, however, that although there was a rise in overall job vacancies, finding the right candidates to fill up these positions remained a challenge for employers.

“In the survey, some of the recruitment issues mentioned by employers is that candidates applying for jobs do not have the relevant skills required for the job, demand unreasonable salary and some don’t even show up for the interview even after accepting the invite,” a press release from JobStreet.com stated.

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The report delved on the strategies bosses are employing to retain current employees.

More than six out of 10 (62%) of bosses stated they preferred to increase employees’ salary and benefits.

Other retention methods mentioned were providing training/career progression opportunities, and offering better work arrangements and promotions.

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