March is graduation month for most universities and colleges in the Philippines. After the excitement and happiness for finally finishing school, anxiety sets in. Questions like "Will I get employed right away?", "What's the career waiting for me?", or "Am I good enough to be accepted in my dream company?" begin to cloud a fresh grad's mind. Let us not forget that these fresh graduates also need to compete with those who are currently or previously employed looking for better opportunities.
What the candidates think
On a scale of 1 to 7 with 7 being what will most likely to happen to those looking for jobs
- Competition in my field of specialization will become tougher (5.47)
- The job market will diversify with new types of skills and jobs (5.11)
- Job opportunities in my industry will grow (5.01)
- More foreign companies will enter the country and start operations (4.98)
- Companies will expand and hire more employees (4.83)
- Start-ups will thrive and grow their business (4.77)
- More local companies will open and set-up business (4.68)
- Searching for good job opportunities will be easy (4.35)
- Getting an interview for good job opportunities will be easy (4.27)
- Applying to good job opportunities will be easy (4.23)
Benefits candidates look for
- Health / medical insurance
- Health / medical insurance for dependents
- Food allowance
- Flexible work hours
- Pension / retirement plan
- Family care leave
- Additional paternity leave
- Additional maternity leave
- Birthday leave
- Marriage leave
Is 2018 a good year for employers and job hunters? Here's Jobstreet.com Outlook Report.
- 95% of employers are foreseeing to expand, hire more and maintain its existing workforce
- 45% of candidates are actively applying while 44% are monitoring the job market
- Sales, Customer Service, and IT are the most in-demand specializations
The Jobstreet.com Job Outlook Report 7-point scale reveals that employers averaged a 5.01 showing an increase in outlook optimism compared to 2017 while job hunters maintained their optimism at 4.68.
Job hunters expressed concerns about the competition in their fields and diversification of skills. They also feel that applying for a good job opportunity may be more challenging in 2018. Those who are currently employed and actively searching for better opportunities stated that their main reason is that the benefits they most prefer are not offered by their present employers.
Are you graduating or someone actively seeking for a new job? Do you have a positive job outlook for 2018? Share your thoughts.
You might also want to take a look at my 2017 article, Are Filipinos Happy in the Workplace?.
