Jobseekers Felt Cheated For Having To Pay Fees To Submit Their Applications At Career Fair
The Kedah state government has denied its involvement in the event.
By Tang Ruxyn — 02 Oct 2017, 02:17 PM
Disgruntled jobseekers have accused organisers of a job fair in Kedah as "cheaters", after applicants were forced to pay before they could attend interviews
Viral posts on social media revealed that several jobseekers were made to pay RM10 in order to get a job application form. It was alleged that they were required to buy at least five forms each, before they could attend the interviews.
New Straits Times (NST) reported a spokesman from the organising company as saying that the fee was imposed for the application and postage. According to him, jobseekers were not forced to pay the fee.
The career fair, dubbed as the "Biggest Career Expo Northern Zone 2017", was held at a hotel in Alor Setar, Kedah, from 30 September until 1 October. It attracted many hopeful applicants as the event revealed that there are more than 5,000 vacancies to be filled.
It was learned that the two-day event was organised by a recruitment portal, Jobsifu.com.
Quite a number of people who went to the career expo returned home feeling disappointed
One of the jobseekers who wanted to be known as Awin, told mStar Online that the event was nothing like what she expected it to be.
"It's not my intention to want to sensationalise this matter but I am compelled to explain the exact situation people needed to go to through when attending the expo. Not only do I feel disappointed, but I also feel cheated."
"I've attended many career expos before but this is the first time I am faced with a situation where graduates need to buy a form to apply for a job. The career expo in Kuala Lumpur is much bigger than here, but I did not have to spend a single cent to buy a form," she was quoted as saying.
It was reported that Awin, who is currently working as a Grab driver, is a finance graduate from Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM).
There were also claims that many traders were selling food and other products at the booths
Facebook user Aizat Hasbullah said that quite a number of people were selling insurance and prepaid cards. There were also those who were selling food and clothing, and even makeup.
This was echoed by another Facebook user, Muhd Hafizul Zikri.
Both individuals noted that there were very few booths dedicated to those who were actually there to apply for jobs and attend interviews.
"Jobsifu is not a jobfair, (it's) just like a carnival and funfair actually," Muhd Hafizul wrote in a post.
A netizen also shared a snapshot of a script that was apparently given to people who were conducting interviews at the event
Facebook user Aimi Shahira alleged that those who conducted the interviews were not representatives from the prospective employers.
Instead, it was alleged that these interviewers were "budak-budak mentah" (inexperienced young people) who were working for the organising company.
Even before the event was over, the organising company's Facebook page was shut down after netizens flooded it with negative feedback and comments
According to Lowyat.net, Jobsifu's website is relatively new as it was only registered on 18 July, while its Facebook page has accumulated more than 220,000 page likes in just a matter of months.
The Facebook page was shut down on 30 September, following criticisms from those who attended the career fair. However, it appears that the page can be accessed by the public again, although it is noted that the page has less than 10 likes at time of writing and all posts prior to 30 September is not available.
Meanwhile, the Kedah state government has denied its involvement in the event
This comes after it was pointed out that the event's promotional banners featured Kedah Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah's photo.
According to Kedah's Science, Innovation and Information Communications Technology Committee chairman, Datuk Norsabrina Mohd Noor, Ahmad Bashah was invited to attend the event on behalf of the state government. However, she said that Ahmad Bashah decided not to attend the event in the end for unspecified reasons.
"I heard complaints from those who attended the fair (regarding fees) that they needed to pay. We regret (that this) happened, and hope the organiser will be more sensitive over the matter," she added, as reported by (NST).