Under the Human Resource Development Act 2001, it is mandatory for companies in the manufacturing and service sectors to contribute a monthly levy to the Human Resource Development Fund. Human Resource Development Corporation manages the fund. The money from the levy is returned to the companies when companies submit claims for reimbursements of the training cost for programs conducted for their employees.
Ideally, this requirement for companies to conduct training for their employees would enable Malaysia to have a trained and skilled workforce. But, sadly, this is not the situation.
In Malaysia, only a tiny percentage of companies conduct training programs regularly for their employees. The management teams of these companies place a high emphasis on improving and enhancing the knowledge and skills of their workforce. Training and development is considered an investment to increase the “capital” of the company.
Employees in these companies benefit from the training programs conducted for them. Training helps to increase their knowledge and skills, which enables them to perform their job better. In addition, the understanding that the company is willing to invest in them will also serve to motivate the employees.
These employees are increasing their value in the job market by increasing their competency level by attending the training and development programs. Ultimately, this will enable them to climb the corporate ladder faster and advance further in their career compared to their colleagues who dislike attending training programs.
The perception towards training must change. Therefore, the staff need for upskilling must be taken seriously. The employees’ skill gap must be identified and training solutions provided, especially in today’s environment. This would be the best usage of the training fund that has been put in place to train the workforce of the nation to move towards being a developed nation.
Should your organization need any assistance in this area, let us know.
“Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”
Aristotle (384 BC – 322 BC)
