KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 27 ― Companies holding off on new recruits due to the current economy should resume hiring later in the year once the financial system stabilises from the fall in oil prices and the ringgit’s depreciation, according to a report by Robert Walters today.
The recruitment consultancy firm added the current slowdown in new job intakes was due to firms taking precautions against the ongoing global economic slowdown that has since spread to Malaysia.
“Across the board, headcount will only be increased for critical divisions. However, recruitment in anticipated to rise as the market begins to stabilize in the latter half of 2016,” Robert Walters’ 2016 Global Salary Survey report said.
It also predicted that those in the information technology (IT) and Islamic banking sectors will likely see a boom once hiring recovers later this year, noting that Malaysia remained the largest player in Shariah-compliant financing.
“In 2016, we anticipate that recruitment of Islamic banking professionals will rise, especially in Islamic asset management which is rapidly growing in Malaysia and is a popular offering by fund management companies in the country,” the report said.
There will be an especially high demand for senior-level IT candidates with both technical and people management skills, as well as those with software development skills, as Malaysia becomes a regional hub in Asia Pacific for IT consulting and shared services.
The firm said it observed a trend of rapid expansion in regional IT hubs based in Malaysia since 2015, noting that this was creating a shortage of skilled talent in vital positions.
“In addition to this, the digital space has experienced rapid growth as larger organisations look to follow the success of smaller companies by utilising digital channels to grow their business,” the report said.
The survey also said that while there will be salary increments in 2016, the raises will be smaller although “returning Malaysians” having the ability to demand “premium salaries.”
Earlier today, state think tank the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (Mier) reported that unemployment levels were set to to increase to 3.3 per cent in 2016, a 0.2 per cent rise from last year.
The think tank also said its survey found more than 49 per cent of Malaysians felt hiring would falter in the last quarter of 2015. Only 16 per cent felt optimistic.
Crude oil price has fallen from over US$120 (RM509) two years ago to around US$30 per barrel. The decline has affected oil-exporting Malaysia, notably in the value of the ringgit that is now around 4.30 to the dollar versus 3.20 in 2014.
