Are we forgetting something?

I remember a chain email (the nice type) that I received not too long ago from my cousin sister. It was about a university professor trying to teach his students that 'everybody that they come in contact with are important and must be acknowledged as such'. So, the final question on his test was 'What is the name of the cleaning lady'. This question carries the same weight as all the other questions that were directly related to the course material. Doubtless, all the students failed to give the correct answer (name). But then, that peculiar question prompted them to seek out that cleaning lady to learn her name. From that day onwards, she 'became important and was acknowledged'.

Now, this little story has deep meanings. Perhaps not what was intended by the professor but nevertheless true.

Recent studies and surveys (including that of Manpower Inc, my parent organisation)shows that skilled and manual labour are the top most difficult positions to fill in both developed and emerging markets. This refers to the truck drivers, welders, brick layers, deep sea salvage divers, crane operators, lab technicians, chemical workers, steel workers, bus drivers, sanitation workers, gardeners, etc. You get the picture? The world is in short supply of those individuals who actually keep the wheel of commerce and our daily lives spinning smoothly.

Malaysians should be familiar with this story line. Just look at who are erecting our buildings and serving us our daily coffee at the kopitiam. Our bus operators just can’t get the good guys to the extent that they hire drug addicts and former cons. In fact our plantations too rely heavily on foreign workers. Perhaps, the recent call by the President of MIC encouraging Indians who desperately need a job to consider working in the estates should not be seen as something regressive. In fact, 'return to plantations' should be a battle cry to encourage people of all backgrounds to begin looking at these jobs in a new light. Perhaps, the government should also stop staying that RM900.00 a month is good money. Come on! As I am writing this, I have a tray of Burger King stuff in front of me that cost almost RM23.00. My parking fees will be about RM20.00 by the time I am done with my next client meeting. Even in rural areas, the cost of living is not as cheap as what our politicians would like us to believe. But that’s a story for another time....

This can be helped tremendously with the right support from our education system and the society at large. The over emphasis on white collar jobs and academic excellence have robbed us of many valuable talents who could have provided us the needed skilled labour. The disparity in salary and the continuous lethargy of the labour organisations in not fighting for a reasonable wage, worker protection and a social safety net have resulted in most people shying away from these critical jobs. In fact, our entire social eco-system is build on and around white collar jobs and middle class culture. We reward kids who earn 15As while we neglect the ones that don’t make the grade although they have a natural talent in agriculture, sports, wood work, mechanical work, etc.

So, yes we must have more doctors, teachers and engineers. Yes, we must have more bio-technologists and IT experts. But we also must have enough of those people who are needed to support these white-collar jobs and they need to be respected, paid well and celebrated as an integral part of nation building.

Blue collar skilled jobs must find a respectable space under the Malaysian sun or we shall face a growth stagnation as we struggle to find enough brick-layers while a room full of architects sit around wondering what to do next.