Brunei Dilemma

In my earlier post 'Unemployment, is it really a Problem?' I wrote that 'Brunei is facing a larger problem and that is the 'mind-set' problem.'

You see, Brunei is unique. I have a strong feeling that the general definition of unemployment in Brunei is 'those who don't work in the government sector or BSP or big banks'. You maybe disaggree but don't you always hear these statements:

"Anakku keraja di company, iatah mun dapat keraja d kerajaan, bisai.."; and
" I am applying to so and so department, in the mean time I'm working in company x"; and
" I would like to work in this company, unfortunately my parents don't let me and want me to work in the government" (this is a real line made by 1 of my husband's x-local staff; and
How many times have you read in the Brudirect Have Your Say, people are accusing certain government departments as being 'croynism' and 'nepotism' because they are being turned down;
And so on and on and on....

It seems that, people don't consider they have a 'proper job' whenever they work in the private sector. Why? Isn't brick-laying or serving in a restaurant or being a receptionist in a company, a job? I am sure a great many of you will answer "It's not the same....and it's not fair..people who are working in the government have high pay, have lots of benefits etc etc".
Fair enough I said. BUT my question is, is it still not a job? Won't it put food on the table?

This is precisely the mind-set problem that Brunei is currently facing. Nothing new to many of us but to me the number 1 cuplrit in the issue of Brunei so-called 'unemployment'.

On the other hand, there are of course thousands out there who really are looking for jobs but don't find one. Yet, we see thousands of foreign workers working as cashiers, sales persons, waiters etc. A large blame has also been put on the employers for doing this. Now, my question is should we really blame them?

You see, I believe the 'mind-set' problem's perfect partner in crime is the 'attitude' problem. And this attitude problem is actually an even a larger problem to solve. While the 'mind-set problem' will be instantly solved once the person finds a job in the government sector, the 'attitude' problem might not (and sometime would get even worse). [Anyway, this post is about mind-set so, a whole new post should be dedicated to the 'attitude' problem of the locals]

WHAT SHOULD WE DO then? You ask.

Now, I've thought of a number of ways to answer this question. (I've even listed a number of strategies hahaha) But I ask myself, WHO am I? Plus it could (probably) put me into trouble.
Well, to me there is no easy and straight-forward answer to this. The strategies should be multi-level for different groups of people. Education, for example, can be the main strategy to change the mind-set of the future generation. National campaigns, perhaps can be launched to change the mind-set of the older generation(the parents who think that there is no job, but government job) and the current job-seekers.

By now, I'm sure you are still going to ask 'What about the remuneration GAP between the public and private sector?'
My answer would be this: The gap for now will still exist. You can't just simply cut down people's salary in the public sector. On the other hand, you can't just simply ask the private sector to increase their salary. As an economist, I would also say that your earning would eventually depend on your productivity i.e. the more productive you are, the more you will earn. And I have seen many examples where people who have lower starting earning (mostly in the private sector) have now out-performed (and earn more) their peers (mostly in the government sector) in terms of productivity and wealth (i.e. in terms of borrowing less).

I would however also like to add that I think it is high time that somebody takes up the 'remuneration gap' issue seriously. Maybe not the difference in salary 'per se' because as I said you can't just simply adjust the salary. But in terms of other 'equal' opportunities. I don't know, but at the top of my head now is the opportunity to upgrade one's qualification, especially in the university and graduate level. For instance, there should be a mean/ public agency where locals who work in the private sector could get the (financial) assisstance to upgrade him/herself (OTHER THAN BANKS of course!). While government employees have the JPA in-service scheme, where can the private employees go to? Yes, the MOE does offer a scholarship scheme to locals but it only caters to young people (up to the age of 30). And what about other skills? So, where can the rest go? (I am thinking of something in the line of interest-free education loan or maybe subsidy to private employers etc.). It is afterall, human investment and will be highly related to higher labour productivity! And I think it is also equally important that Brunei should create local expertise not only in the public sector, but also in the private sector, especially so if we want the private sector to be the 'engine of growth'.

Oh! there goes my afternoon... To end, I think the mind-set problem is the cause of a real dilemma for Brunei unemployment problem. On the one hand, you want to solve just simply by creating as many jobs (in the government sector) as you can but it means the locals won't learn and won't recognize that there is a problem i.e. they won't change. On the other hand, you can't just leave the matter and hope that people will 'eventually' change. Afterall, unemployment is still a problem and needs to be properly addressed. And it is complicated! And that is why I believe everyone should work together to solve this dilemma. Policies and efforts must be syncronized with one another. Public and private must work hand in hand.

Oh Dear! What do I know? I'm just a mommy of 2. Enough thoughts for today!

Salaam.

ps. You can be sure that my husband and I are grooming our children to enter the private sector, which we believe have A LOT MORE to offer : ).