Labour minister advises class X and XII passed students to join training institutes first, not jobs.
After working as a non formal education instructor for about four years and as an office assistant in a private company, Dampel Zangmo, a class X graduate of 2003, was among some 300 job seekers who turned up at the fourth regional job fair in Gelephu yesterday.
Lack of annual increment, provident fund scheme, tours and other opportunities forced her to look for another job.
“We are stagnant in a private company and I’m hoping to get one this time,” Dampel holding a file of CV and certificates said. She has applied for one of the vacancies in the project.
Most of the 300 job seekers were class X and XII passed students of Gelephu higher secondary school while others were university graduates.
But, most were disappointed with the job fair because the vacancies with attractive salaries demanded an experience between five to 15 years in the related field.
One of the graduates who travelled from Thimphu to attend the fair was Sonam Thinley, 27, a B.com graduate from one of the colleges in Shillong, India. He had applied for the post of an accountant and procurement assistant in two different organisations, but did not fulfill the requirements.
“Employers should not expect experiences from fresh graduates because experiences come only after employment,” Sonam said. “If they have informed us about such requirements, I would not have come here by spending so much.”
Apart from the job fair, Sonam said he had so far sat for more than 10 interviews. Many times, he was not even shortlisted given the low aggregates. Most graduates at the fair had scored below 40 percent. “That’s why we don’t even get shortlisted. If only the selection was solely based on written interviews regardless of the pass percentages,” Sonam said.
A total of 26 employers including six technical training institutes, two zorig chusum institutes, private companies and institutions, Royal Bhutan Police, Mangdechhu power project and four Indian companies like Jaiprakash Associates Ltd., Gammon India Ltd., PES Engineers Pvt. Ltd participated at the fair.
Of the 1,212 job vacancies and 618 training opportunities offered at the fair, there was a on-the spot recruitment for only 25 applicants. In some cases, the employers took the applications while there were no applicants for technical posts like engineers with most of the Indian companies asking for experiences.
“There is not a single applicant for civil and mechanical engineers although we’re desperately in need of them for the time bound projects,” Marti India company’s administrative and personal officer, Rupesh Kumar said. “We’re waiting for them to turn up.”
Labour minister Dorji Wangdi who inaugurated the fair told job seekers that the main intention of the fair was to bring together job seekers and employers on one platform to understand each other’s requirement.
One of the reasons for unemployment today is due to mismatch between skills and the jobs available, lyonpo said. “There are ample jobs available but job seekers are not willing to take them,” he said.
He also advised the class X and XII students to join training institutes to enhance their skills and make themselves more valuable in the job market rather than seeking a direct employment. Communications minister Nanda Lal and members of parliament were also present at the opening.
Source: Kuenselonline.
