As much as we say we love our country, the sad truth is that there are plenty who want to emigrate for a better career and working life.
A recent online survey was conducted by Randstad with a demographic of employees aged 18-65 and working a minimum of 24 hours a week in a paid job (not self-employed), and a minimum sample size of 400 interviews per market.
The study found that as many as 90% of local respondents said they would work abroad for better opportunities. About 80% of the respondents in Malaysia wanted a role that would allow them to travel - an all expense paid trip would be a dream come true, after all. Other than the fun factor of simply travelling, overseas exposure is also crucial as workers will be able to gain new perspectives and pick up different skills from their global counterparts on top of building an international network of connections.
Photo: Randstad
Managing Director of Randstad Singapore and Malaysia, Ms. Jaya Dass said, “Young employees are highly-motivated and eager to learn new skills, meet new people and experience new encounters. Compared to senior professionals, they are also more willing to emigrate as many of them do not have family responsibilities yet and are focused on their career development.”
85% of respondents said that they would relocate for a substantially higher pay, with 71% saying that they would do if they could keep their jobs with their current employers (quite a lot of loyalty there ah).
When asked which country they would prefer to work in, most respondents chose Australia, followed by Singapore (almost no surprises there!) and Japan. Meanwhile, 48% said that they would rather switch careers than to emigrate. Other than the very attractive currency exchange rates, these countries are believed to be able to provide better salaries with a healthier work-life balance for employees.
Photo: Randstad
“It is critical for companies to keep up with the labour market changes and invest in their businesses and people as we make the fundamental shift to become a highly-innovative economy, which is prompted by the fourth industrial revolution. The more we embrace technology, the more skilled jobs there will be for our local talent. The shift will also create more training and development opportunities for the workforce to equip themselves with in-demand skills, particularly in new technologies. When this happens, the average salary benchmark will increase and workers will be able to negotiate for career progression and higher salaries,” Ms. Dass added.
There were around 40% respondents who expressed interest in finding a job, while 21% have changed employers over the past 6 months! While 42% said that they were not actively seeking a job, they would be interested should an opportunity present itself (because why not, right?).
By: Celestine Foo
