Two Main Reasons That Forced Many Malaysian Professionals to Quit

As countries around the world return to onsite work, Malaysia is experiencing higher-than-usual turnover rates mainly due to:

• Employees' dissatisfaction with wages and benefits, and

• A lack of career progression opportunities.

According to Mercer's Covid-19 pulse survey, employers now have to manage labour shortages and return to workplace plans, including other matters such as vaccination policies and the constantly evolving worksite safety protocols caused by the pandemic. 

 

Greener pastures

In a statement, Mercer said that most Malaysian respondents observed a higher turnover rate, specifically at the mid-career level, compared to prior years. 

57% of the employers said employee dissatisfaction with salary is the main reason for turnover. Limited career advancement came second at 41%, followed by the employee's ability to get better benefits at another company at 32%. 

With the increasing turnover involving mid-career employees, employers find it tough to hire them because of the inability to search for the right skills that would match the pay. 

Mercer said that four in 10 respondents experienced moderate to significant difficulty attracting mid-career and senior workers, compared to hiring entry-level positions. 

Career business leader of Mercer Malaysia, Koay Gim Soon, said that it is unfortunate that the employers, specifically small and medium enterprises, had to deal with high turnover and retrenchment rates at this time. However, he said that multinational companies were improving their recruitment in 2021 to support their business recovery and growth. 

He said that in a market that lacks skilled workers, mid-career workers are in demand as they have considerable experience and the potential to be groomed as future leaders. He added that as workplace flexibility becoming the expectation, it is not a surprise for these workers to search for more than benefits and compensation in their next move. 

 

Keeping your employees happy

Companies have been utilising financial incentives to keep their employees, such as:

• Offering higher than market rate salaries,

• Improving promotion chances, and 

• Instituting retention bonuses.

Mercer also noted that Covid-19's disruptions put the spotlight on factors beyond financial incentives. 

According to its survey, respondents believed that having a reputation as a "great place to work" would help attract candidates as inadvertently, the organisation's culture will benefit the company to retain talent. 

Mercer's CEO for the South-East Asia Growth Markets, Godelieve van Dooren, said the pandemic sped up employers' need to reassess their ability to keep talent in the face of skills shortages and a tight labour market. 

Instead of focusing on what's driving attrition, companies should consider matters that will make their workers stay. 

She said that while there is a tendency to compete for talent using financial rewards and incentives, it is not sustainable in the long run and can be easily replicated by competitors. 

More intangible drivers such as workplace flexibility, culture, and career progression will be key competitive differentiators for employers to hold on to their employees. 

Source: The Malaysian Reserve

Articles that might interest you 
CIMS Letter No Longer Necessary for These Sectors
Employers Can Now Get COVID-19 Self-Test Kits From SOCSO 
Clinic Assistant Unfairly Dismissed After 37 Years of Service