Unrealistic salary demands among causes of fresh grad unemployment

Unrealistic salary demand by fresh graduates such as wanting to be paid as much as RM6,500 when applying for their first job was the top reason for them to not get hired, according to a survey from Jobstreet.com last month.

jobsDB.com Regional Communications Head, Simon Si said employers were asked why it was hard for fresh graduates to get hired in the survey and 68 percent of the respondents cited that fresh graduates asked for unrealistic salaries.

"About 30 percent of the fresh graduates want to be paid as high as RM6,500 in order to live comfortably.

"There are top five reasons why fresh graduates don't get hired. Firstly, asking for unrealistic salaries, poor command of English, choosy about the job or company, poor communication skills and poor character, attitude and personality," he added.

Si was speaking to reporters after launching the first JobStreet.com 2016/2017 Fresh Graduate Salary Guide at Multimedia University (MMU) in Cyberjaya today.

He said among the factors which contribute to fresh graduates demanding for unrealistic salary were parents' financial support which exposed them to a high standard of lifesyle during student life and their parents would stop supporting them once they started working.

"Some of the students now already have their own cars before starting to work. Another reason is the high cost of living," Si further said.

On the fresh graduate salary guide launched today, he said the guide was designed to give an indication of what was the average salary offered by companies to help fresh graduates understand the job market better.

"This guide can be useful for employers as well as fresh graduates. The actual salaries for various positions, variation based on many factors such as market demand and supply, the academic grades, acquired skills of the candidates, compensation and benefit policies of the hiring companies," he said.

- Bernama