KUALA LUMPUR: Many young workers today appear to have no choice but to accept inferior forms of employment compared with their education level or skills training.
Khazanah National Berhad’s “School to Work Transition Survey” report launched by its Managing Director Datuk Shahril Ridza Ridzuan (pix) here today, revealed this mismatch.
The report said that 95% of those in unskilled jobs and 50% of those in low-skilled manual jobs are over-qualified for their jobs.
“These over-educated young people are likely to earn less than they otherwise could have and are not making the most of their productive potential.
“Not only do the skill mismatches signify wastage of human resources but they also put into question the view often expressed in the media that youth are ‘choosy’ about jobs. They should not be considered ‘choosy’ if they are doing jobs below what they are educated and trained for,“ the statement said.
However, it said that the under-education of young workers would have a negative impact on worker productivity and have a negative impact more personally on their sense of security.
The statement also said the current jobs of the young workers were not something that they preferred and were mismatched with the education.
For example, of those with qualifications in science, mathematics and computing, 25% prefer IT-related jobs but only 17% are actually in such jobs.
The report also shows a concentration of young workers actually working in wholesale and retail trades which generally do not require specific qualifications and which are not among their preferred employment or job of choice.
“This concentration of young workers, more than half of whom have tertiary qualifications, in the wholesale and retail sector that is not their preferred job and that generally does not have educational restrictions indicates a mismatch between education and employment,“ it added. — Bernama
