Sunday June 12, 2011

Source: BY PRIYA KULASAGARAN
educate@thestar.com.my

Employers who have been used to a rigid work culture will have to change their ways if they want to retain their young, talented workers.

CREATIVITY, innovation and the knowledge economy are supposed to be key defining terms for the 21st century workplace.

But Harris Abdullah*, 26, thinks that these ideas are more rhetoric than reality for the Malaysian companies that he has worked for so far.

Having worked for four employers in the past two years, Harris says that there is a common underlying reason for his job-hopping.

“While all my previous bosses kept lauding the virtues of creativity, the employees were treated like production-line workers rather than individuals.

“At my last job for instance, you were only working if you were chained to the desk between nine to five everyday.

“In fact, my colleagues and I felt obliged to hang around an extra hour or two even when we had completed our work for the day, as it was an unspoken rule that only lazy employees left work on time,” he says.

He adds that his current working environment is a more conducive one due to a different management mindset.

“I now work for a multinational firm, and I think that my bosses here allow more flexibility – my performance is measured by the quality of my work rather than how long I stay in the office,” he says.

In a recent report on youth unemployment (“Work in progress”,in The Star’s Rage section, May 11), Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) executive director Shamsuddin Bardan was quoted saying that young graduates have become increasingly demanding.

“They (graduates) must prove that they can work first, there must be a compromise. Prove you can add value to the company, then you can start demanding,” he says.

This demanding nature of the current white-collar workforce has been seen as a common Generation Y (Gen Y) trait.

Gen Y, generally referring to those born after 1980, is a much hyped about cohort set to shape the future social, economic and political landscape.

One reason why this generation is warranting such attention is because of its sheer size as 11.5 million people or about 40% of Malaysia’s population is under the age of 30.

The worldwide Gen Y population is an estimated two billion.

In terms of the workplace, the stereotype of the typical Gen Y worker is one who questions authority, is technologically-savvy, and expects work to accommodate his personal life rather than the other way around.

It is this perception of the new workforce that has employers in a twist about what exactly to do with them.

Senior business executive G. Sreenivasan says that young graduates today have an overt sense of entitlement.

“I notice my younger colleagues are quick to demand flexible hours and perks; I don’t remember being like that when I entered the workforce.

“Perhaps it’s because they have grown up being accustomed to having all their wants catered to by their parents, and expect their bosses to do the same,” he says.

He adds that parents are partly to blame for fuelling such narcissism.

“Look at the recent uproar of government scholarships, with parents insisting that their children are worth taxpayer money simply because they scored a string of A’s in their examinations.

“Unfortunately, academic grades or even a first-class degree means nothing in the workplace if you cannot communicate well and don’t have a good attitude,” he says.

While manager Margaret Gomez has no issues with her young subordinates, she thinks that a major failing of Gen Y workers is their inability to separate their personal lives from their professional ones.

“I have received resumes where applicants attached quite inappropriate photographs; one even sent a picture of herself in a silly pose in her bedroom!

“While these sort of things are fine to share on social networking sites, it’s important to set some boundaries for work if people are going to take you seriously,” she says.

Even so, Gomez thinks employers should tap into this sharing nature of the young instead of just dismissing it.

“The great thing about young people is their enthusiasm and I think employers would do well to use this positive energy; what’s wrong with making the workplace more conducive and even a little more fun?” she says.

Changing mindsets

Based on 17 young people spoken to for this article, the consensus seems to be a rather simple one: that they are misunderstood, do not want to be dictated to, and believe that employers should earn their respect.

Despite calling himself a “job-hopper”, Harris believes that the new crop of workers are no less loyal than before.

“We’re just less inclined to be completely subservient to a company,” he says.

“I saw my parents slave through corporate jobs, sacrificing their time for family and leisure with nothing much to show for it at the end of the day.

“I have no desire to repeat their mistakes, but I would definitely stay at a company that earns my trust — I foresee sticking to the firm I am working for right now because my bosses have my respect, and respect me in turn.”

Echoing this sentiment of learning from one’s parents, Lee Su Ann,* 23, says that the current workforce is idealistic and wants to enjoy the work that they do.

“I think every generation goes through a change of mindsets, based on the kind of ideas they were exposed to.

“My parents’ generation made it more acceptable for women to go to work and earn an income, so my generation is set on breaking its own glass ceiling as well.

“Perhaps what defines my generation is that more of us embrace the idea of actually loving work, rather than just seeing a job as a source of income,” she says

She adds that due to globalisation and technology, young people today have more opportunities at their disposal.

“We have the power of information now, so sourcing for new ideas and jobs is easier than before.

“Since our parents worked hard to provide a better life for us, we are able to start on a stronger footing than they were able to,” she adds.

Ravin Rajasingham,* 28, thinks that Generation Y is more questioning of authority that those from generations past.

“I don’t see this as a bad thing because what I really mean to do is offer constructive criticism of the status quo.

“The problem is that some Malaysian employers see this as rude behaviour, and immediately silence the feedback we offer,” he says.

Stringent hierarchical values and excessive bureaucracy are also things that do not sit well with Gen Y.

“I think this problem of being treated according to your ‘employee status’ is particularly prevalent in Malaysia,” says banking personnel Shamsiah*.

“It’s hard for a junior to sell his or her ideas at my company, because you have to pay your dues by working for a certain number of years first.

“Also, decisions are always made in a top-down manner, without taking into consideration any employee input.

“If we are going to seriously encourage creativity, this attitude has to change.”

Lawyer Chee Ying* agrees, adding that an employee’s value does not come from age alone.

“While I believe in proving my worth to employers before making demands, I think I should be immediately recognised for the work I deliver,” says the 26-year-old.

“If my bosses want immediate results, I want immediate compensation as well.”

He clarifies that compensation here need not be monetary incentives alone.

“Of course, I won’t say no to a bonus! But it would help if I were given more opportunities to learn, and handle more challenging assignments as well as have a mentor to guide me in perfecting my skills,” he says.

Unrealistic demands?

Ravin further theorises that the new workforce is seen as demanding because they refuse to put up with age-old practices.

“My previous boss reprimanded me for being troublesome because I asked a lot of questions about the way things were being run,” he says.

“The final straw was last year when the company’s profits were down —faulty office equipment went unrepaired, claims went unpaid and we didn’t receive our annual bonus due to cost issues.

“But the top management still took home fat bonuses. When I questioned the rationale for this, I was reprimanded yet again. So I left.”

Now working for a non-governmental organisation in Australia, Ravin says that he is much happier with his current arrangement.

“While my pay is much lower than what it used to be and the job is less glamorous, the process here is more transparent – I feel valued as an employee,” he shares.

For mechanical engineer Kelly Tay*, 26, the gender disparity of her previous workplace caused disillusionment with local employers.

“I remember being subjected to sexist remarks in interview after interview,” she says.

“A company questioned my commitment to the job because of my gender; the interviewer actually asked me if I would prefer to be a secretary instead because that was a ‘proper’ woman’s job!

“After finally securing a job at a local firm, I only lasted three months because I received inappropriate attention from my older male colleagues.

“When I complained to my female supervisor, she just said that if she could put up with it, I should as well.”

Kelly has since secured a job in Taiwan, and adds that she has no plans of returning.

Aizat Musa, 24, meanwhile, thinks that it is unrealistic for employers to set low wages for entry-level jobs and expect graduates to be “thankful for them”.

“My pay at my first job last year was RM1,800 - initially I was glad to just gain employment, but by the end of my first month I was struggling to make ends meet.

“I don’t think I had any luxurious expenses; I had to pay for my study loan (RM150); petrol costs, car instalments and parking charges (RM900); and room rental (RM350),” he says.

He adds that while he could still get by, some of his peers were less fortunate.

“I was lucky because I knew my parents could still help me out financially if there was an emergency of any sort.

“But some of my friends were in a much worse situation, having to live in unsafe places and eat instant noodles every day so that they could set aside savings for a rainy day.

“It’s easy for employers to say ‘take low-paying jobs because you’re still young’, but I think that only those from privileged backgrounds can afford to take up such jobs because they can still fall back on their families,” he says.

Some may think that Gen Y’s expectations of the workplace are excessive, but increasing research on the demographic suggest that they are not all that different from their predecessors.

A study on over 1,000 people between the ages of 16 and 63 by the Ashridge Business School, United Kingdom for instance, suggests that many of the attitudes and behaviours of people are more a reflection of their age rather than their generation.

Meanwhile, PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) 2009 study titled Millennials at work: Perspectives from a new generation indicates that there a number of similarities between millennials and previous generations

“The new generation wants stability, security and variety in their working environment,” concludes the PwC report.

“They want to be loyal to an organisation that they are proud to work for and which reflects their own values.”

Is that not an ideal that we can all aspire to?

* Names have been changed