PETALING JAYA: Pride, salary and relevance to what they have learned. These are among the reasons given by some graduates for keeping away from “3D” jobs - those deemed “dangerous, dirty and demeaning”.
They would rather remain unemployed than take up jobs in farming, factories and direct sales or become tourist guides, The Star found.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr Fong Chan Onn had said on Wednesday that the government would hold job fairs nationwide to draw unemployed graduates into these sectors, which the youths shy away from.
However, those interviewed, said they felt that being interested and taking pride in a job was more important than being merely employed.
Andrea Chong, 24, who has been jobless since graduating in January, said working in a factory is not something she is interested in.
“A lot of graduates want to work in an office.
“From our school days, our parents and teachers have instilled in us about the kind of jobs that are good and those that are not so good,” said the psychology graduate, adding that wanting to be a doctor or lawyer was the norm.
Eevon Chung, a public relations graduate, said her parents did not spend much money on her education for her to work in a farm.
“It’s not that these jobs are demeaning. We just have the pride to not take up a job like that,” said the 23-year-old, adding that she would rather be jobless than to sweat under the sun.
Putt Chan, 24, graduated two months ago with an advanced diploma in computer studies and is currently helping out at his mother’s restaurant.
“I would not consider being a factory supervisor because the salary is too low. I think higher salaries should be offered to those with higher education,” he said. Meanwhile, the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) and the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) said they would encourage their members to take part in the planned job fairs.
MEF executive director Shamsuddin Bardan said unemployed graduates should not be picky and should take on jobs to gain valuable experience for better prospects later.
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