What do you know about new-collar jobs?

The term ‘new-collar’ originated from former International Business Machines (IBM) CEO, Ginni Rometty, back in November 2016. She perceived that the word ‘new’ addresses the need of Information Technology skills. IBM initially led the movement for new-collar technology jobs which soon after many other companies followed suit.

New-collar jobs prioritize technical and soft skills instead of educational achievements. Different from mainstream jobs, one does not require a three-year Bachelor’s degree to apply for these new-collar jobs. Instead, they are normally trained at vocational and community colleges to acquire the skills. You would hardly see new-collar jobs in industries other than IT and manufacturing. Some of the roles also revolve around data science, coding and cloud administration.

If you are looking to hire for new-collar roles, you must revamp the traditional hiring methods you’ve been practising all this while. Referring to an article by Forbes, the new-collar hiring strategies are to look beyond information presented on CVs and go after potential rather than experience. Before you begin your search, gather the traits and skills necessary for the job requirement. Another bonus to lookout for is additional soft skills demonstrated by candidates which may come in handy during their employment. 

Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) programmes are available in Malaysian vocational colleges to equip its human capital with vital skills demanded by industries. In an interview with Bernama (Feb, 2020), former Human Resources Minister, M KulaSegaran mentioned the high potential of new-collar vocations in terms of future prospects and income. He also added that the International Labour Organisation (ILO) guarantees TVET courses will remain relevant even fifteen years from now.

In the coming years, you should expect to see even more new-collar job openings. As it is, the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the job landscape thus it is no surprise if said jobs may cover a larger surface of existing industries.