Most insurance company will pay claims for H1N1 deaths and treatment

The Life Insurance Association of Malaysia (Liam) said today that all the 16 life insurance companies under its association will pay claims arising from deaths and hospitalisation due to influenza A (H1N1), The Sun newspaper reported.

"Even though a majority of the medical policies carry exclusion on communicable diseases requiring quarantine by law, life insurers are responding to an immediate need of the nation in light of the increasing number of people who have been infected," the paper quoted a statement.

It said, however, that insurers would continue to monitor the situation and would inform policy holders of any change in decision.

The General Insurance Association of Malaysia (Piam) said the health coverage and policies varied among insurance companies.

"It depends on the companies whether to include Influenza A(H1N1) in their policy. We cannot force them to change their policies," Piam technical advisor Tan Eng Leong said.

According to the Piam website, health policies generally do not exclude hospitalisation treatment for infections or communicable diseases like H1N1.

"However, some policies do expressly exclude cover for communicable diseases requiring quarantine by law. This means that if H1N1 is classified as a communicable disease requiring quarantine by law in Malaysia, then the policy would not cover such medical expenses," he said.

Malaysian Medical Association president Dr David Quek Kwang Leng urged insurers to be more magnanimous and empathetic under such crises.

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Senior Marketing Manager (Global Technology Services) at IBM Malaysia Sdn Bhd

Branch Manager at Adecco Personnel Sdn Bhd (HQ)

Sales & Marketing Executive at Reliable Human Resources Services

Most Disabled Found Job.

If you are disabled and if you have registered with online Disabled Placement System (SPOKU), chances of getting a job is good.

This was based on the announcement by Deputy Human Resource Minister Datuk Maznah Mazlan who said 78 percent of 10,802 disabled registered SPOKU have found jobs with the government and private sector.

"Some RM12.5 million of the RM22 million allocated to help the disabled under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) had been given to 328 recipients since 2007," she told reporters after opening a study and work-from-home programme here Thursday, according to the Bernama news agency.

Maznah said the business encouragement aid scheme for the disabled was a strategy by the government to help develop their business.

According to the report, the aid was given to those with five types of disability namely physical handicap, blind, deaf, mental and also midgets.

The Welfare Services Department would give RM2,700 to the disabled just starting their business before the aid arrived.

She said those who had proven their business ability would be given grants of RM10,000-RM100,000.

More retain than retrench.

Good trend amongst companies in Malaysia, its more about retaining staff than retrenchment. The Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Malaysia (ACCCIM) said 66% of the 306 companies it surveyed were willing to retain their workers during the current challenging economic situation, reported Sinchew Daily.

According to ACCCIM’s 2009 Malaysia First Half Year Economy Report, this shows a 14% increase in companies willing to keep their workers compared with the second half of last year.

The daily quoted its economic survey panel head Datuk Chua Tia Guan as saying that the economy continued to decline due to government policies, operating costs, higher prices of raw materials and lower local and global demand in the first half of the year.

ACCCIM, which received 306 replies from the 699 questionnaires sent out said 85% of the respondents were small and medium enterprises specialising in wholesale and retail trade, manufacturing, business services and construction.

Jobless grads as cops?

Calling all the jobless graduates there, or at least those who are interested to wear blue uniform and fight crime.

According to newsreports, the Home Ministry is calling on all unemployed graduates to become auxiliary cops to combat crime.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the Government was willing to consider special allowances for jobless graduates to serve as law enforcers until they secured better jobs.

The report noted that those who had served would be offered positions in the police force if they felt it was their calling to become law enforcer.

Hishammuddin was also quoted as sayin that the ministry was willing to listen to suggestions from the graduates on the types of policing task that they preferred to focus on.

He added that the ministry would increase the presence of tourist police in popular destinations throughout the country.

Wake Up Women! We need more of you up there.

Just when we thought women are now on par with men competing in the upper league when it comes to career, in comes a less pleasant news.

Yes, it seems the number of women in top posts is falling. And this news came from none other than our Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin who said women were under-represented at the decision-making levels of public-listed companies.

“The percentage of women who are members of boards of directors declined from 9.9% in 2004 to 6.1% in 2008,” he said in his keynote address at the Women’s Summit 2009 yesterday, according to The Star newspaper..

He said that women only held 12% of top positions in government-linked companies.

The report also quoted him as saying that it was important for women to continue to play a role in the country’s socio-economic development.

“The cost of women’s exclusion is too high for us to bear. Gender justice and women em powerment are not only essential to our economic development but also a great leap forward in nation building,” he said.

Get that girl power going, ladies.

More Private Docs for Gov Hospitals.

Not especially a nice sounding news when H1N1 is raging everywhere. The health ministry is looking to hire private doctors in government hospital as apparently they are experiencing shortage.

The Star newspaper quoted Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican as saying that the ministry would ensure private doctors were given deserving salaries and promised that their admission into public hospitals would take as fast as two weeks.

“The private doctors can work based on contract or sessions. They can work two weeks in a private hospital and spend the rest of the month in a government hospital. It would be like putting one leg in the public hospital and the other in a private hospital,” he said.

He added that the ministry had started advertising since last week to rope in more private medical practitioners.

Socso: RM100,000 From Errand Employers.

Social Security Organisation (Socso) has been around for so long and even then there are empoyers who seemed to be in denial about their existence. Or at least about RM100,000 worth of denial last month.

As a matter of fact, that was the amount the organisation collected in compounds last month from employers who failed to register their employees with the organisation.

Socso senior general manager Dr Mohamed Azman Aziz Mohamed was quoted in the media reports as saying that during the nationwide operation against errant employers, 431 out of 1,455 employers screened did not register their eligible employees. He said they were compounded RM500 for each unregistered employee.

“We want to raise awareness among employers on the importance of registering their workers with us to ensure that their welfare is taken care of,” he said.

Good. Let's hope there will be more such operations.

Eight Essential Telephone Etiquette Tips

Even in these days where we communication mainly by e-mail or SMS, the first contact a customer has with your company is often through the good old telephone.

Make sure it's not the last with these eight simple etiquette tips.

Answer the phone within 3 rings
Answer on the first ring if possible. If you don't answer fast enough, your caller may hang up in disgust and call your competitor.

Calm down before you answer the phone
This is particularly important if you're having a heated discussion with a colleague or dealing with looming deadlines. Take a deep breath to regain your composure before you pick up the phone.

When you answer the phone, begin with a greeting
(Hello/Good morning/Good afternoon) followed by your company name and then identify yourself. E.g. "Good morning, Widgets Inc. Mary Lee speaking."

Starting with "Good morning" or "Hello" starts your conversation on a cordial note, and allows the caller to hear your company name and your name clearly.

Smile when you speak on the phone
This may seem odd when the caller can't see you, but it really does make a difference in your tone of voice and your attitude.

If you need to transfer a call, tell the caller who you are transferring them to before putting them on hold
Tell the caller the name of the person to whom he or she will be transferred, or at least the name of the department. E.g. "I'll transfer you to Zahara / Sales." If possible, give them that other party's direct number before putting them on hold. Don't just say "Hold on please" and leave them to wonder what's going to happen. Also, accidents do happen and you might get cut off. When they call back they will be able to dial or ask for that other person directly.

Use the mute button wisely
Most modern telephone systems have a mute button. Make sure you know how to use it. When you need to transfer a call or if you need to put the caller on hold to look up something, make sure to push that mute button; don't just put your hand over the mouthpiece. You never know what might happen that you won't want a caller to overhear.

Don't keep them on hold forever
Never keep a caller on hold for longer than 20 seconds. Even if you haven't found the answer for them, check every 15 seconds or so to make sure they're still on the line – and to let them know that you're still on the line. Nothing turns off a potential customer faster than thinking that they've been forgotten.

Hang up last
When winding up a call, make sure the caller hangs up before you hang up. He or she may think of something to ask at the last moment, and you don't want to risk leaving them talking to a dial tone!

US: Economy’s better, but jobs are slow.

Still very cautious, that’s the attitude out there in US, though the economy is showing some ease.

U.S. employers who have cut jobs over the past year are in no hurry to start hiring again just because the recession is tapering off, reports wired news service AP.

It noted that from a North Carolina machine maker to an Oregon heating-and-cooling company, small business owners say they need to see several months of rising sales before they start adding staff.

“Because labor is the biggest expense for most companies, that kind of caution is typical at the end of recessions.

“After the last one, in 2001, unemployment kept rising and didn't peak until June 2003 - 19 months into the economic recovery,” the report said.

It also noted that some economists say unemployment may not return to healthy levels until 2013.

“Companies have been slashing workers' hours, squeezing more work out of the employees who are left and relying on cheaper temporary staffers to fill the gaps,” AP reported.

Jobs Malaysia: Malayan Banking Berhad - Maybank

Executive, Business Continuity Management, ORM, Risk Management

Executive, Strategies & Planning, Network Development, Network Delivery Support

Executive, Product Support, Merchant Support, Merchant Business, Cards

Executive, Credit Risk, Risk Management, Risk & Compliance, Cards

Executive, Business Development

Anecdote on Self Appraisal

Forwarded item that may interest you:

"Self Appraisal"

A little boy went into a drug store, reached for a soda carton and pulled it over to the telephone. He climbed onto the carton so that he could reach the buttons on the phone and proceeded to punch in seven digits (phone numbers).

The store-owner observed and listened to the conversation:

Boy: "Lady, Can you give me the job of cutting your lawn?
Woman: (at the other end of the phone line): "I already have someone to cut my lawn."

Boy: "Lady, I will cut your lawn for half the price of the person who cuts your lawn now."
Woman: I'm very satisfied with the person who is presently cutting my lawn.

Boy: (with more perseverance): "Lady, I'll even sweep your curb and your sidewalk, so on Sunday you will
have the prettiest lawn in all of Palm beach , Florida."
Woman: No, thank you.

With a smile on his face, the little boy replaced the receiver. The store-owner, who was listening to all this, walked over to the boy.

Store Owner: "Son... I like your attitude; I like that positive spirit and would like to offer you a job."
Boy: "No thanks,

Store Owner: But you were really pleading for one.
Boy: No Sir, I was just checking my performance at the job I already have. I am the one who is working for that lady, I was talking to!"

This is what we call "Self Appraisal"

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Sales & Marketing Executives at ISTE Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd

Account cum Admin at Oriental Pacific Futures Sdn Bhd

Project Cost Estimator at Climate Systems Sdn Bhd

Better ICT than People

It's heartening to note that companies is doing a humane favour when cutting cost, but not letting the people go.

A media report quoted SMI Association of Malaysia as saying that small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) spending on the information communication technology (ICT) is expected to drop this year.

The organisation's ICT bureau chairman Lee Hwee Hsiung said ICT spending was expected to fall this year due to the current economic crisis; SMEs might choose to cut down their ICT spending as a way to reduce their operating cost.

“However, SMEs will continue to spend on ICT as they need it to enhance their business operation. They will do so in a more cautious way,” he told the Star newspaper.

The report also quoted him saying that the ICT spending was expected to grow gradually from next year onwards when the market started to pick up.

“ICT is important in enhancing companies’ operations but a lot of companies do not emphasise this area due to the capital problem as the prices of some ICT products are really high,” he said

More Pay They Stay

What more satisfying way to retain workers than increasing the wages. This was exactly the message from the Human Resources Ministry.

Its minister urged the industry players to do just that, mainly to retain the local workforce.

In a report by The Star newspaper, he said the reason why many Malaysians sought jobs outside the country was because of the low wages being offered.

“How can we expect people to want to work for eight hours for only RM500?” he was quoted in the reports today.

Dr Subramaniam said even with overtime payments, the monthly wages would come up to between RM800 and RM900.

“We have to understand that our workers have responsibilities such as a family to take care of and house and car loans to pay,” he said.

In the report, Dr Subramaniam said local industries should realise that the Government was trying to reduce the number of foreign workers and should help by paying fair wages.

Tell Me About Yourself

So, tell me about yourself.

The "Tell me about yourself" question is probably as old as dinosaurs but it is also one of the toughest questions to be asked as well. There is no one absolutely right answer to the question, because being an open-ended question, no one could say that you've answered wrongly.

However, in the context of an interview, it would be wiser to conform to the expected answers to the question, as required by the interviewers. All questions are asked with an underlying purpose, because in an interview, time is of essence. No one wants to be wasting time asking silly questions or questions that do not give them any vital information about yourself, unless it's intended for ice-breaking.

"Tell me about yourself" is designed to let you reveal information about your personal achievements, your strong points, your character and how you can actually contribute to the company. This question actually lets you preview your best side to the interviewer, as you will subsequently go on to expand on your answer in the following questions asked by the interviewer.

When asking that question, interviewers are not expecting you to tell them a long-winded story about your life. They need you to tell them the highlights of your career, be it academic or working life. Being extremely interested in singing, and explaining that you often spend your free time unwinding at the karaoke stations in town with a bunch of your friends is not going to help the prospective employer analyse any strong positive points about you that could be converted for the benefits of the company.

Give them the milestones in your life whereby you have managed to overcome some huge obstacles in your life, or have accomplished some major project that could have changed the lives of people around you. Give them something stunning and outstanding about you that would make them want to rope you in to work with them. Tie your achievements to the needs of the company hiring because that would ultimately be what interviewers are looking for-how you could fit in into his team of people and what you could contribute for the company.

But please be prepared to expand on your answers because you are not helping things if you merely slap the interviewer with just a one-sentence answer, such as, "I'm really good with my words.". The next thing that would inevitably pop out in the interviewer's mind would be, "And.?". You need to justify your answers and not leave the interviewer with more question marks concerning you. You could probably say, "I'm really good with my words because I'm really passionate about language and linguistics. I could come up with write-ups or stories really fast, and I could even adjust the tone of my writings to the client's needs, which makes me really versatile with my words."

At times, interviewers may also help you along the way, after having asked this question. But don't be too dependent on it because it may leave the interviewer with the impression that you are not well-prepared.

This, being one of the first questions usually asked during interviews is definitely your best shot at marketing yourself to the prospective employers, because it is the time when you have full control of what comes out of your mouth. Use the opportunity wisely and you may have just talked your way to employment with the company.

220,000 jobs by 2020: SEZ PM

That's a big number and its not impossible says our prime minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Why? He just lauched the country'sfirst Special Economic Zone (SEZ),

The new economic zone is expected to generate investments worth RM90bil and create 220,000 new jobs by 2020, says media reports today.

The Prime Minister was quoted in the report as saying the SEZ was expected to contribute more job opportunities and yields compared with the East Coast Economic Region (ECER).

The SEZ covers an area of 3,875 sq km from Kerteh in Terengganu to Pekan and Gambang in Pahang.

Najib said the ECER SEZ was part of a new economic model designed by the Government that promises a fairer distribution of wealth and growth to be enjoyed by all.

“One of the projects identified is the Kuantan Port which will get a massive face-lift. Its current annual cargo bulk is expected to increase from 16.8 million metric tonnes to 30 million metric tonnes by 2020.

“It will involve construction of additional berths and wave breakers that will see the port becoming the main entry and exit point for the export and import of goods,” he was quoted as saying.

Participate in JobsDB Monthly Survey

How have the year been so far? How has the economic uncertainties affected you and your career?

JobsDB is conducting monthly surveys and we will be very pleased if you can spare a few minutes to participate in this month’s survey on the economic certainty and how it has affected the job seekers. Thanks for your co-operation. Click the link below to start!

http://bit.ly/OOu7Y

2010: Global economy back on track

Same story, but from different voice.

According to reports today, The global economy is expected to be back on track by early next year, said former World Bank economist and bond market expert Ismail Dalla.

“The world economy is in a recovery mode,” he said, adding that his outlook analysis was based primarily on the World Bank’s latest forecast for a positive growth of 2.8% in the world economy by the last quarter of 2010.

In the report, he cautioned that “despite some signs of recovery due largely to the amount of money being pumped into the US economy, interest rates will remain low and unemployment will remain high for some time to come.”

"Commenting on the development of the domestic bond market, Dalla, now a visiting professor at the School of Business, George Washington University in the US, noted that Malaysia had the largest corporate bond market as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) in the world last year, surpassing that of the US and South Korea," the report said.

He also applauded Malaysia’s efforts in developing a healthy and robust local currency bond market and the recent proposal to create a private pension fund as an alternative to the Employees Provision Fund (EPF).

Go Flower Power.

Or at least that's what Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, wife of the prime minister wants. She said Local authorities and those in the flower business need to play a bigger role in instilling a love for flowers and garden.

“Local authorities and other related agencies should come up with programmes and activities to promote an interest among the public to seek business opportunities in the field,” she said during the launch of the Putrajaya Flower and Garden Fiesta 2009 (Floria 09) here, according to media reports.

This is the second time Putrajaya Corporation is organising the biennial event themed “A Celebration of Colours”. It will be held until Aug 10.

The nine-day fiesta boasts of over 400,000 exhibits including flowers and vegetables. So, go on there and you may find yourself ideas for business ventures.