The Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said when winding up the debate on the Ninth Malaysia Plan at Dewan Negara yesterday that the private sector should stop the practice of making it compulsory for local graduates to be proficient in Mandarin.
The next day, Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr Fong Chan Onn said the requirement for prospective employees to be fluent in Mandarin should be made optional.
Clearly, when you are in certain categories. You would feel upset when a job advertisement excluding your categories to apply for certain job.
I have a friend who is in middle age. He always feel discriminate and upset when he saw a job advertisement stating that application should not be over 35 years old. He also upset the Pak Lah government appointing young CEO to head Government Link Company (GLC). He said those young people lack the experience required for such a position.
I even see A Kadir Jasin, a veteren journalist criticize Pak Lah government appointing young people to handle the Prime Mininster's press office.
If you do not known Mandarin, you will feel discriminate and upset when you see a job advertisement stating ptoficient in Mandarin as a requirment to apply for certain position.
However, I feel it is better for a job advertisement to state clearly what is the requirement for certain job, so that I do not waste my time in applying a position that I would not get employed.
This also enable me to know what I lack of or which area or skill I have to improve.
What difficulties a large organization to ask an officer to handle "courtesy interview"?
When I was employed by a Main Board listed company(Now PN17) as an Assistant Accountant. The company place an advertisement for "walk in interview". My department head who want to employed a person who know Mandarin but never stated in the advertisement.
A lot of candidates take the trouble to come to our office for walk in interview and they spend hours to fill up the form and waiting for their turn of interview.
I was ask by my Manager to conduct courtesy interview for those who do not qualified after perusal their forms. The candidate who spend hours travelling to our office, filling up their form, and waiting long hours for their turn of interview, will send to my room for courtesy interview which last for less than 2 minutes. The candidates will ask to go back to wait for company call if successful, which usually not.
Thus, would it be better for the candidate being told earlier the requirement and they need not apply if they unable to fullfill certain requirement. This safe the company time and safe the time of candidates.
I encounter a lot of non-chinese who able to speak fluent Mandarin. They usually "bertudung". Look for Tini in Citi Bank or visit a stationery shop in Taman Desa, Off Old Klang Road if you want to see one.
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