by KT Leong
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between HST Sdn Bhd and Silveryouth Sdn Bhd yesterday at the Royal Ipoh Club, with guest of honour YB Khairudin Abu Hanimah (Perak EXCO) as well as representatives from state agencies and others, such as MB Inc and PASAK, there to bear witness.
HST Sdn Bhd CEO, Matt Ngai, spoke on how based on data from the Malaysian Ministry of Education Graduate Tracer Study Department of Statistics Malaysia, out of 1100 who graduate from the automotive field in Perak every year, 16% become unemployed, yet the automotive industry are still short staffed.
He noted that among the reasons for unemployment were insufficient practical experience and skill incompatibility among others. Which is why HST and Silveryouth will be working together for HST to become a training provider; who will develop a training syllabus, source vehicles, provide training and apprenticeships, and ultimately, absorb new workers and provide job placements.
Asked to elaborate further by Ipoh Echo, HST Sdn Bhd stated that the plan is for the body and paint repair courses to be opened to all Perak Youth (classified as those aged between 18 to 40), regardless of automotive experience. As long as they have the interest to develop in this field and meet basic education requirements, such as passing the SPM or having a diploma; they will be eligible to join. There will be no requirement that they need to be unemployed, but given the nature of the programme, it would be most likely that the participants would be those currently in between jobs.
At present, Silveryouth and HST will jointly develop the training modules together. There are plans to engage relevant public and private agencies to jointly develop and provide the training, but as of now, nothing is concrete yet.
In regards to any fees to be paid or if any allowances were to be offered, HST said that HST and Silveryouth will seek training allowance from the state agencies to cover the training costs, and also to subsidise the trainees’ allowance. Ultimately, the plan is to ensure available training funds from the state are channelled into the correct training which will produce the desirable workers for the Body & Paint industry in Perak.
Those interested should stay tuned, as opportunities in the automotive industry in Perak will surely rise with programmes such as these.
