Bosses prefer Multi-skilled workers with the digital technologies, Global Randstad Workmonitor Report

PETALING JAYA: Malaysian employees expect their jobs to be more demanding with the increasing influence of digital technologies in the workplace and more bosses preferring to hire multi-skilled workers.

The latest survey by a global recruitment and human resource services firm showed that nine out of 10 Malaysian workers expected their jobs to be more challenging over the next five years.

According to the latest Randstad Workmonitor Report, greater workplace expectations were higher in Malaysia compared with respondents in Singapore (80%), Hong Kong (73%), Australia (73%) and New Zealand (82%).

The survey, based on 405 respondents, also found that 95% of the Malaysian workers were willing to develop their skills to meet the changes.

Randstad Malaysia director Jasmin Kaur said employers have increased the emphasis on education, experience, social and digital skills.

“With organisations becoming leaner, employees are now expected to be not only high performing, but to be able to put on several hats,” she said.

Jasmin said the figures were reflective of Malaysia’s aim to become a high-income nation by 2020.

Malaysian Employers Federation’s (MEF) executive director Shamsuddin Bardan concurred with the report’s findings

“Like it or not, this is the definite trend due to the demands of business,” he said, adding that even older employees had to adapt to the digital trend of being wired and contactable.

Jasmin said the survey also found that most of the respondents believed that their employers placed greater importance on digital skills than they did five years ago.

“With social media being a part of today’s business environment, being comfortable with using tools such as Twitter and LinkedIn could help an employee keep connected and abreast of what is happening in the industry.

“Different companies have different expectations of their workers. Employees who are client-facing may be expected to be on call outside of standard office hours to respond to clients as required,” she said.

Shamsuddin echoed similar views, saying that it was now a necessity for employees to be reachable anytime of the day, whether it was outside work hours on while they were on holiday.

However, he said employers recognised that there had to be a work-life balance for their staff, adding: “Being contactable is not the same thing as working 24/7.”

Burnt out: Employees face stressful days at home and at the workplace if a work-life balance is not struck.

He said employers also knew that happy employees were more productive.

MTUC secretary-general Abdul Halim Mansor said the umbrella organisation for unions was against the culture of employees being at the beck and call of bosses beyond working hours.

He said the Malaysian Employment Act specified rest days which workers were entitled to.

“Notwithstanding the demands of the job, the rights of employees to get adequate rest should be respected,” he said.

Abdul Halim said such a working culture could have negative impacts on families and communities.

Company managers, who spoke to The Star, said the nature of a job and position would determine if an employee had to be on call.

“For those in management, there is no escape,” said the human resources manager of a multinational company in Kuala Lumpur

Another manager, who also declined to be named, said being on call 24 hours a day was already a norm.

“The company provides employees with smartphones so they can be reached anytime,” she said.

The survey, conducted between July 17 and Aug 5, also found that 77% of Malaysians were satisfied with their current employer compared with 56% in Singapore, 47% in Hong Kong and 44% in Japan.

Jasmin said a pleasant working environment, effective leadership and career development training were the reasons why Malaysian employees remained satisfied.

The quantitative study was conducted via an online questionnaire. The respondents were between 18 and 65-years old, working a minimum of 24 hours a week in a paid job.

Randstad issues its survey report four times a year.

- Contributed by  by p. Aruna, Neville Spykerman, and D. Kanyakumari, The Star/Asia News Netowrk

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Vietnamese hero defeated French and US dies aged 102

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Vo Nguyen Giap, the celebrated general who masterminded the defeat of the French military at Dien Bien Phu and led North Vietnam's forces against the US, has died aged 102 at a military hospital in Hanoi.

Giap, whose victory at Dien Bien Phu triggered France's departure from Indo-China, was a self-taught leader regarded as one of the great military geniuses of the post-second world war era.

He remained as the commander of the North's forces supporting the Viet Cong throughout the subsequent Vietnam war, being credited with the 1968 Tet offensive.

Giap, known as the Red Napoleon, was a national hero whose reputation was second only to that of Ho Chi Minh.

While some, such as the American journalist Stanley Karnow, regarded him as a strategist in the mould of Wellington, others, including the US general William Westmorland, believed his success was down to his ruthlessness.

Indeed, Westmorland complained to Karnow: "Any American commander who took the same vast losses as General Giap would have been sacked overnight."

Giap was born in the village of An Xa on 25 August 1911 and attended the University of Hanoi, gaining degrees in politics and law, before working as a journalist.

He was jailed briefly in 1930 for leading anti-French protests and later earned a law degree from Hanoi University.

He fled French police in 1940 and met Ho Chi Minh in southwestern China before returning to rural northern Vietnam to recruit guerrillas for the Viet Minh, a forerunner to the southern insurgency later known as the Viet Cong.

During his time abroad, his wife was arrested by the French and died in prison. He later remarried and had five children.

In 1944, Ho Chi Minh called on Giap to organize and lead guerrilla forces against Japanese invaders during World War II. After Japan surrendered to Allied forces the following year, the Viet Minh continued their fight for independence from France.

Giap was known for his fiery temper and as a merciless strategist, but also for being a bit of a dandy: Old photos show him reviewing his troops in a white suit and snappy tie, in sharp contrast to Ho Chi Minh, clad in shorts and sandals.

Giap never received any formal military training, joking that he attended the military academy "of the bush."

At Dien Bien Phu, his Viet Minh army surprised elite French forces by surrounding them. Digging miles (kilometers) of trenches, the Vietnamese dragged heavy artillery over steep mountains and slowly closed in during the bloody, 56-day battle that ended with French surrender on May 7, 1954.

"If a nation is determined to stand up, it is very strong," Giap told foreign journalists in 2004 prior to the battle's 50th anniversary. "We are very proud that Vietnam was the first colony that could stand up and gain independence on its own."

It was the final act that led to French withdrawal and the Geneva Accords that partitioned Vietnam into north and south in 1956. It paved the way for war against Saigon and its U.S. sponsors less than a decade later.

The general drew on his Dien Bien Phu experience to create the Ho Chi Minh Trail, a clandestine jungle network that snaked through neighboring — and ostensibly neutral — Laos and Cambodia, to supply his troops fighting on southern battlefields.

Against American forces with their sophisticated weapons and B-52 bombers, Giap's forces again prevailed. But more than a million of his troops perished in what is known in Vietnam as the "American War."

"We had to use the small against the big; backward weapons to defeat modern weapons," Giap said. "At the end, it was the human factor that determined the victory."

It was his command of Viet Minh forces during the eight-week battle of Dien Bien Phu, which raged from March to May in 1954, that made his reputation.

Vietnamese forces, who wore sandals made of car tyres and lugged their artillery piece by piece over mountains, managed to encircle and crush the French troops in a bloody engagement immortalised in Bernard Fall's Hell in a Very Small Place.

Although he was at first a renowned exponent of guerilla tactics, Giap commanded a devastating conventional assault at Dien Bien Phu, in which his forces used Chinese-supplied artillery to prevent effective resupply by air of the base deep in the hills of north-western Vietnam.

During the bitter fighting that would follow, the garrison, comprising a series of outposts in a deep valley, gradually succumbed.

On the brink of being overrun by Giap's forces, the French commander, Christian de Castries, was forbidden to surrender in an infamous order from his superior, General René Cogny in Hanoi, who told him: "You will fight to the end. It is out of the question to run up the white flag after your heroic resistance."

The unlikely victory, which is still studied at military schools, led not only to Vietnam's independence but hastened the collapse of colonialism across Indochina and beyond.

Giap went on to defeat the US-backed South Vietnam government in April 1975, reuniting a country that had been split into communist and non-communist states. He regularly accepted heavy combat losses to achieve his goals.

"No other wars for national liberation were as fierce or caused as many losses as this war," Giap told the Associated Press in 2005 in one of his last-known interviews with foreign media on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the fall of Saigon, the former South Vietnamese capital.

"But we still fought because for Vietnam, nothing is more precious than independence and freedom," he said, repeating a famous quote by Ho Chi Minh.

In later life Giap served as deputy premier and minister of defence.

He is survived by Dang Bich Ha, his wife since 1949, and four children.

Sources: AP & the guardian

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Malaysia and China set trade target of RM511bil, usher new era of strategic partnership

Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak jointly meet the press in Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, Oct. 4, 2013. (Xinhua/Zhang Duo)



PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia and China have set an astounding bilateral trade target of US$160bil (RM511bil) by 2017.

Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and President Xi Jinping discussed this at a closed-door meeting at the Prime Minister’s office here yesterday.

The two leaders also discussed a five-year economic and trade programme and agreed to elevate the current cooperation between both countries into a comprehensive strategic partnership.

Najib and Xi said this in a joint statement issued after the meeting.

Last year, the bilateral trade volume between the two countries reached US$94.8bil (RM303bil).

This makes Malaysia China’s top trading partner among the Asean countries for the fifth consecutive year.

Najib said Xi expressed keen interest in seeing Chinese companies participate in Malaysia’s high-speed rail (HSR) project, the China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park and the Malaysia-China Kuantan Industrial Park.

“We also would like to see more trade between the countries settled in the renminbi and ringgit,” he said, adding that the information on this should be disseminated to the private sectors of both countries.

Najib said Xi indicated some new areas of cooperation between the two countries, which included information and communication technology, biotechnology, science and space technology.

“We agreed to step up our cooperation in law enforcement, combating transnational crime, cyber security, as well as stronger and deeper military cooperation,” he said.

Najib added that Malaysia would be opening a Consul-General office in Nanning while China would open similar offices in Kota Kinabalu and Penang.

“Malaysia also fully supports Xi’s suggestion, which he made in Indonesia, for the establishment of an Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank which would certainly help in the development of Asean,” he said.

The Prime Minister hoped that the project to develop the Malaysian campus of the Xiamen University, its first outside China, would become a reality in near future.

Najib added that he was also looking forward to visit China next year, at the invitation of the Chinese government and Xi, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Malaysia-China diplomatic ties.

Earlier in the morning, Najib and Xi and their spouses attended a welcoming ceremony at Dataran Parlimen in the presence of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Sultanah Hajah Haminah Hamidun.

Sources: The Star/Asia News Network

 Xi's visit ushers in new era in China-Malaysia ties

Chinese President Xi Jinping left Kuala Lumpur Saturday after concluding his first state visit to Malaysia, which helps usher in a new era in China-Malaysia relations.

During his stay in Malaysia, Xi met Supreme Head of State Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah and Prime Minister Najib Razak, and attended a China-Malaysia economic summit. He also witnessed the signing of a series of cooperation agreements.

Both sides agreed to upgrade bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership, and make efforts to expand annual bilateral trade to 160 billion US dollars by 2017. The first Chinese university outside China, Xiamen University Malaysia Campus, will also be set up in the Southeast Asian country.

The visit by President Xi marks another great leap forward of bilateral relationship between Malaysia and China.

"In fact, the achievements of the visit are well beyond my expectation. It's a miracle that so many achievements have been made within such a short period of time," said Tan Khai Hee, secretary general of Malaysia-China Friendship Association.

Upgrade of bilateral ties

During their talks on Friday, Xi and Najib agreed to upgrade bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

"China highly values its relationship with Malaysia, which is taking the lead in China's relations with ASEAN members," Xi said, urging the two sides to enhance strategic cooperation to make their relationship a fine example in the region.

ASEAN stands for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which consists of Malaysia and nine other Southeast Asian countries.

Xi said the upgrade to a comprehensive strategic partnership will draw a more "beautiful" blueprint for bilateral ties.

For his part, Najib said his country hopes to enhance the comprehensive strategic partnership with China.

"China is a trustworthy friend of Malaysia," he said. "Our bilateral relations enjoy vast prospects."

The single most significant achievement of Xi's visit is of course the upgrade of the bilateral relationship to comprehensive strategic partnership, which China only accords to its most valued neighbors and friends, said political analyst Oh Ei Sun, a former political secretary to Najib.

While the economic collaboration will continue to prosper in gigantic leaps, the comprehensive nature of the relationship will see more technological, cultural and educational exchanges, which are crucial for the ever closer relationship between the two countries, he said in an interview with Xinhua.

Win-win cooperation

China has been Malaysia's biggest trading partner for the last four years, while Malaysia has been China's largest in the 10-member ASEAN for five years in a row.

Two-way trade soared to a record high of 94.8 billion dollars last year, while trade in the first seven months of 2013 jumped 14.9 percent to 59.72 billion dollars.

The Qinzhou Industrial Park in China and the Kuantan Industrial Park in Malaysia, noted Xi, should be built as flagship projects of investment cooperation between the two countries.

Beijing encourages Chinese enterprises to participate in the development of northern Malaysia and the high-speed railway construction linking Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, which will promote regional inter-connectivity, said Xi.

When addressing more than 1,000 business people and officials at the China-Malaysia Economic Summit on Friday, Xi proposed that the two countries boost bilateral trade and investment, deepen cooperation in the sectors of finance, agriculture and fishery, and jointly improve regional cooperation.

The Chinese president and the Malaysian prime minister witnessed the signing of the five-year program for economic and trade cooperation, which emphasizes the sharing of knowledge, technological resources and investment in the service of sustainable economic development and maps out mutually beneficial initiatives.

The two leaders have set an ambitious target that by the end of the fifth year of this program, bilateral trade between China and Malaysia will hit 160 billion dollars.

The program covers many areas of cooperation, including agriculture, energy and mineral resources, information and telecommunication, manufacturing, infrastructure, engineering, tourism, logistics and retailing.

Pheng Yin Huah, president of the Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia, said the program shows that China values its relations with Malaysia and President Xi wants more Chinese businessmen to invest in Malaysia.

"I believe that Malaysia and China will have more exchanges in politics, business and education," he added.

Regional cooperation

During his visit to Malaysia, Xi called for further cooperation between Asian countries.

Although Asia remains the most dynamic and promising region in the world, Asian countries still face the arduous tasks of developing economy and improving people's livelihood amid lingering impact of the international financial crisis, Xi said.

He called on Asian countries to focus on development, carry forward the all-in-the-same-boat spirit of unity and cooperation, and jointly safeguard the long-term stability and development in Asia.

"China supports ASEAN's leading status in East Asia cooperation, and is happy to see Malaysia play a bigger role in the region," Xi said.

Najib said Malaysia also stands ready to advance the development of ASEAN-China relations and promote peace, stability and prosperity in the region.

"Whether on bilateral trade relations or international efforts to build a more sustainable global economy, we are strongest when we work together," Najib said.

In an interview with Xinhua prior to Xi's visit, the Malaysian leader said that as a founding member of ASEAN, Malaysia stands ready to contribute to stronger China-ASEAN ties.

"Not only is China a dialogue partner with ASEAN, but it's also an integral part of the East Asia summit," he said.

"Because of that, the relationship between China and ASEAN is very important and continues to grow particularly in terms of trade and China's involvement in major infrastructure projects in the whole region," he added.

While in Indonesia, the first leg of Xi's maiden Southeast Asia tour since he assumed presidency in March, Xi said China and ASEAN countries should work for win-win cooperation, stand together and assist each other, enhance mutual understanding and friendship to increase social support for bilateral ties, and stick to openness and inclusiveness.

Differences and disputes should be properly handled through equal-footed dialogue and friendly consultation for the overall interests of bilateral ties and regional stability, he said.

Xi arrived here Thursday and left the city Saturday for the 21st informal economic leaders' meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation to be held in Bali, Indonesia. -  Xinhua

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