JANUARY 6 ― If there's one thing Malaysia isn't short of, it's current affairs commentary. So I'm taking a break this year from the usual rants to talk about what's going to be on a lot of people's minds: work.

I'm calling this series of work-related columns CariKerja, inspired by the Malay phrase cari kerja (looking for work). Don't worry, am pretty sure I'll offend as many people as I usually do as I am very prone to cari pasal (looking for trouble).

This time of year, you'll usually see astrologers and other members of the metaphysical community give their forecast for the new year. The usual “rabbits will be horny, porcupines will be cranky and those born at 5.01 on Saturdays will stub their toes.”

I don't need a crystal ball to tell you that the job market will be rough; and it will be tough on those who graduate this year. Wages have been stagnant for a long time now and if you're overly picky about your starting wages, prepare to be jobless for a long time.

Understand I do not condone this state of affairs. It is not market-driven; it is just that for a long time, when it comes to starting pay, employers for the most part have long resisted adjusting wages to inflation. It's much the same in the US, where the working class often have to juggle 2-3 minimum wage jobs just to survive.

Unfortunately for us, the ringgit's buying power isn't all that impressive. In the US, you could buy a used 2007 Volkswagen GTI for less than US$5,000 (RM21,782). What would you get for RM5,000 in Malaysia? A second-hand slightly shabby Kelisa.

Retail salaries are still around RM1,500 and that's if you have a degree or diploma. Managers of fast-food outlets get RM3,000 or so. This is what people were getting paid in the industry more than a decade ago ― which is a ridiculous state of affairs.

So don't expect that shiny piece of paper to be your instant comfort or a well-paying job. The reality is that unless you're in banking or finance, you'll be lucky enough to make RM2,500 as starting pay.

This is not the year for you to negotiate. Too many graduates base their salary expectations of how much they should get paid on how much they need to survive.

Your employer isn't going to care that you have study loans/car loans/insurance to pay off. All that is your problem.

If it's your first job and you're not going to make much from it, well, the only thing I can do is tell you to suck it up. Car pool. Sleep on a friend or relative's sofa. Pack lunch every day. What matters is you have that first job and that is going to be your ticket to better-paying ones.

Because that's really the only way you'll get paid more. Staying too long at a company, you will likely only see modest yearly increments of 3-5 per cent. If you're lucky enough to be promoted, maybe you'll get more than that. But that's depending on both the economy and what industry you're in.

Ignore your mother's ranting that your cousin is making RM8,000 a month. If we could all easily make RM8,000 in just a couple of years after graduating, I wouldn't be writing this column. 

Rough it out for at least a year. Get confirmed. Prove to yourself (and mum) that you can tough it out.

Make this your daily mantra when things suck (and they will, if you're unlucky): You have a job.

The bus is crowded and the person next to you has terrible BO? You have a job.

Your boss missed the memo and thought you were slacking off at home when your supervisor let you work from home? You have a job. You have to make excuses to skip a wedding because you can't afford to pay the angpau? You have a job.

Because not being able to say that, especially in a terrible economy? It is a terrible experience which I will share with you some time. There is a lot of wallowing involved and with decidedly too little ice cream.

Just remember this: crappy jobs won't last forever but sometimes they're just what you need to score a much less crappy job later.

Next week I'll talk about resumes, how they're really not hard to write and why you probably shouldn't use your pink glitter pen for them.

*This is the personal opinion of the columnist.