KUALA LUMPUR: Organisations with strong social responsibility practices are being viewed as “employers of choice” by Malaysian job seekers who prefer companies that focus beyond performance outcomes and promote larger social goals, according to an international workplace survey.
About 90% of Malaysian job-seekers have a strong preference for organisations with sound ethical, social responsibility and environmental policies, reported the Kelly Global Workforce Index, by global workforce solutions Kelly Services, which obtained the views of nearly 100,000 people in 34 countries, including almost 2,000 in Malaysia.
“Employees take pride not only in what they do while at work, but in what their organisation stands for and how it is perceived by the entire community,” said vice-president and country general manager of Kelly Services (M) Sdn Bhd, Melissa Norman.
“It provides a sense of fulfilment to be part of an enterprise that is focused not only on performance outcomes but also on larger social goals,” she said. Employees across all age generations gravitate to organisations considered ethically and environmentally responsible, but as they got older, employees appeared more aware of social and ethical issues.
Fifty-eight percent of baby boomers (aged 48 to 65) would be prepared to take a pay cut or a demotion to work for a socially conscentious employer, followed by Gen Y (aged 18 to 29) and Gen X (aged 30 to 47) at 50% and 49% respectively.
Norman said that this may be reflective of the fact that many younger Gen Y employees may be in their first jobs and are not in a position to be choosy about where they work.
Globally, workers attach greater significance to ethical rather than environmental issues. In Malaysia, 50% said that in deciding where to work, policies aimed at addressing global warming are “very important”, compared to 74% who said that ethical conduct is very important. 
Half of workers here surveyed are prepared to accept a pay cut or a demotion in order to work for an organisation with a sound corporate reputation, the survey said. This compares to 53% in Singapore, 48% in Hong Kong and 44% in Thailand.