With only 5% of Malaysians thinking that they have ‘great jobs’, should employers in Malaysia be worried about the loyalty of their staff? Apparently not.

According to a poll by Hays, more than half (54%) of the 568 Malaysians surveyed believe in job loyalty and are prepared to stay with an employer for more than five years.

More than three out of 10 (32%) said they’ll stay up to five years while the final 14% would prefer to change employers every one to two years.

“Most Malaysians at heart do believe in job loyalty,” said Tom Osborne, regional director of Hays in Malaysia.

“The job for life mentality is long gone, but so too is the mindset of job hopping regularly. Today more than 50 per cent of Malaysians want to stay with their employer for five years or more suggesting that, for most, stability, security and loyalty are important.”

Despite such reassuring figures, staff in Singapore were found to be more loyal than those in Malaysia

In Singapore, 59% of the 1,183 locals polled stated they are prepared to stay more than five years with an employer while 30% will stay up to five years and 11% would like to change employers every one to two years.

In Hong Kong however, the percentage of loyal staff was found to be slightly lower, with 49% of the 493 respondents prepared to stay more than five years with an employer.

Almost three out of 10 (26%) said they’ll stay up to five years while 25% would like to change employers every one to two years.

“Given this, it’s up to employers to ensure they create the environment in which employees can remain. After all, people want to stay with their employer long term, but they also want their careers to continue to develop and thrive,” Osborne said.

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Lynne Roeder, managing director of Hays in Singapore said: “This means employers need to provide all staff with ongoing training and development, regular reviews and promotional opportunities. They also need to deliver what they promised in the recruitment process so that the reality of working at their organisation matches what they promoted when they were attracting top talent.”

Dean Stallard, regional director of Hays in Hong Kong added: “As long as staff are offered stimulating work and their career continues to advance, most will stay.”

“A lack of career progression is the number one reason people come to us looking for their next job, so we can’t emphasise enough the importance of putting career development plans in place,” he said.

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