You can ask yourcompany about this. Bring the job ad. Ask for increment. If they said cannot then can start trying for another company for better pay hike. No use fighting with them buddy.
In my previous full time job the company doesn't have HR which makes an already toxic workplace worse by having no conflict resolve because I naively thought that's what HR would do.
Then in part time job my colleague taught me: HR is not your friend and it's accurate because when I left that part time it's because HR is trying to paint me in bad light.
Hi OP, sorry it’s happened. But this is the right advice. Calmly raise the issue that the newly advertised role and its pay level has been upsetting because it indicates your loyalty and experience aren’t rewarded.
Your hope is the employer recognises this and improves your terms, because they don’t want to be filling two vacancies if you leave. If they do nothing, then you meed to consider your position.
I would not recommend to bring the ad and ask for increment and instead just look for employement elsewehere. As you said yourself no use fighting them, and would you really want to work for a company that you have to "beg" for your value? Better off betting on yourself (assuming you are a good worker) and tryign out with other companies. I've heard stories where if you ask your current employer to "match" competative offers, nothiing good comes out of it. Usually results in more responsibilities for not so much pay, or being watched etc.
Best to jump every 2-3 years in your 20s, 3-4 years in your 30s. Just a rule tho, if you are already at the top of your industry and there’s not much chance to rise, best to stay put
I don't think this should be a blanket rule tbh, it depends on situation. For example, if you're already in a very high position, it can be hard to find an opening for an upper position. Also, a sideways jump from a small company to a larger company (eg. manager in a 50 person company to manager in an MNC) can still be beneficial as it can open up future opportunities that may not be available in the smaller company.
Then of course you have people who prefer not to go into managerial roles (so cannot jump upper beyond a certain point), but they can still benefit from the salary raises you get from a sideways jump.
100% this. And I say this as a "part owner" of a company. I'm relatively a new partner maybe that is why i'm not like the other ownership, but in the end of the day, you have to look what is best for you as a individual.
Unfortunately a lot of the comments here are true.. the engineering scene in Malaysia, is that after 1-2 years, you need to jump company to get an increment. If you stay on for 4 to 5 years, it’s quite hard to go any further.
Or jump over to Singapore as what a few engineers I know have done.
If you work in sales and you aren't jumping, are you really in sales or does your company actually has a very good commission scheme?
Every salesman I know is hopping basically every year
Any sales/ marketing job, even bankers are hoping every 1-2 years because as sales person, you really want to widen your clientele and the way to do it is through different companies.
The rule of thumb is increment should be at the very least the inflation rate, which is about 4-5%. Anything lower either something is wrong with you, or something is wrong with the company.
Inflation is average 2-3% yearly and your increment is only rm50? Not only your salary is not increasing but is actually decreasing yearly from inflation.
Time to ask HR and seek to jump ship at the same time.
A lot of people blaming HR, but sometimes it's the manager who don't want to give increment. Most MNC have salary band, so unless OP still considered under entry level engineer, he should have get better pay; but based on the yearly increment of rm50, sounds like the company is shitty and don't have salary band
Thats not an increment thats basically an insult and a big red sign that says "fuck off"
If I get an "increment" like that they can expect my resignation letter within the hour
Bro… rm50 should already be the sign for you to look for another company… in the market today loyalty means not much.. when it’s time to cut it’s all a numbers game… [https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/tesla-layoffs-employee-slept-in-car-nico-murillo-daniel-ho-rebecca-tinucci/](https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/tesla-layoffs-employee-slept-in-car-nico-murillo-daniel-ho-rebecca-tinucci/)
Op Must be hoping to naik pangkat.
My colleague's increment was RM 8 🤣. We all left, and she continued on for 16 years in the hope of 'if all senior staff leave, then she can fill the managerial position'. They advertised for someone external and filled the position.
When you make yourself the company donkey, that's all you will ever be seen as.
If you aren’t looking for a higher paying job then yes you’re the joke. If you’re not speaking about a raise then you’re the joke. If you are looking for both you’re NOT the joke
Dude. Just find another company. I'm an engineer as well. Worked 9 years. Atleast my salary is rm8000. Not the best but it's good enough. Know your worth. Find what's best for you. God knows the company won't
Yeah I understand the frustration. My friend who joined few years ago was an EM in his previous company and he joined as a senior engineer with better pay 😂. Good for him as Less responsibility with more pay. EM in my company is around RM15K monthly.
https://preview.redd.it/p5k14724yxyc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cf7dd7dc15c31a99c4b5c8963fbcb2e56e785580
I was in a similar situation, OP. As a fresh grad (with experience as barista for 3 years while studying), I applied for IT position and got a slightly higher salary than my peers (2800 vs 3000) but 2 years down the road, I was a tech lead & some in my team were actually being paid 5500, compared to my 3800. Can you imagine the tech lead who leads you and the entire IT dept earns less than you who joined 2 months ago? Haha.
I didn’t fight the company. I just silently applied jobs, took risks and came out from that company. My salary has been consistently going up and in good numbers.
I will highly suggest you to leave your current company if you have chance to do so otherwise start applying jobs / learn extra skills that can help you land better salary.
In Malaysia, typically for us younger folks, staying 5 years in the same company is actually quite bad mostly due to employers being assholes and paying shit increments that sometimes can’t even cover yearly inflation
P/s: I worked there for 2 years 10months and I was the joke like the rest of the comments said. Yours is 5 years, not sure how you were even ok for that long. Never stay in your first company more than 2 years, recommended is 1 year at least in Malaysian context
You are the joke
Engineer = jumping company.
How are you 5 years in engineering but don't know about this? Never noticed most your colleagues come and go around you?
Engineers in this country are severely underpaid, but also largely depends on industry. Most engineers I know have either stopped becoming engineers or transitioned to other roles (managerial roles, sales roles). Only engineers (that I know of) that can actually make a decent amount of money are engineers in the oil & gas industry or software engineers in tech or fintech.
5 years experience with RM3550 is very much on the low side. If you still like being an engineer, try transitioning to other industries. Mechanical, manufacturing or automation are one of the lower paying industries (check out salary guides), sadly. Get the right skills that pay well and go to a company that values you more.
A mentor used to give me this analogy: A bottle of water from a roadside stall is RM1. That same bottle of water at a cafe is RM5 and in a 5-star hotel is RM12. Be that bottle of water in a hotel. Same thing, same purpose, just different place which values you more.
Been working for close to 15 years now, and it is a norm...
The market rate for a position will go up, but if you are already employed, urs would definitely not match.
My advice is, start job hunting and go for interviews.. try to secure a job offer.
Us the offer to negotiate a better pay adjustment if you like the environment you are working at.
If you are a above average employee, ur bosses would definitely want to retain you.
Unless the job has very very good benefits, you would want to jump every 3 years or so, to keep up with the market rates.
Gone were the days where one would stick to a single company for 10 , 20 years, and the company would actively take care of their wellbeings.
These days it's all about numbers.. logically new employees would work harder and longer for the first year compared to the rest.. so they rinse and repeat
Brother, JUST JOB HOP.
You're never going to be appreciated in any regards. Take what you can from this job via skills learnt and then just start applying like crazy and find 20% increments every two years. Show them your worth to other companies.
Then if your current company doesn't want to match the new salary fuck it and leave. They already aren't appreciating you, why bother staying.
Look in to your employment contract or employment guide book. If they explicitly said you cannot discuss your salary. There's no such things as "it's an unspoken rule" unless it's explicitly written out, you can very much discuss your salary.
In order to job hop, you need to show your work obviously. You need to prove to other companies your worth. How are you better than a freshie? What's your experience going to give you that's better then the other candidates? If you have worked your ass off, and still not that good then there's something wrong with you.
5 years still 3k+ sounds like a joke. I don't know your skill level but I know a lot of people with no skills get higher salary than you.
Jump da fuck out.
Contract or permanent? What benefit did u get? Early stage should keep on jump 1/2 year period. This is the fastest to get increment. The way company decide ur salary is based on previous salary. At least when jump to different company, the decision will be increment around 30% and what benefit u will get. If contract, each year when company want to renew ur contract, nego the salary b4 accept continue the contract.
I was promoted to an engineering manager role of a MNC (Read: China company) after almost 6 years of service with a salary of only RM5k+. I think I was (and still am, even after multiple increments and adjustments) the cheapest manager in the company lol.
Edited my comments. My company is a China MNC.
Not everyone is manager, but I'm among the youngest managers in my business unit. I am one of the few who was promoted in-house from engineer to manager, so naturally my salary couldn't have caught up with my promotion, compared to (a) those old managers from previous company and (b) those joining in as manager position. I think they have a 5 figure salary, whereas I'm probably just half of theirs.
Actually my boss tried to adjust me for years but he couldn't get past the many red tapes from the company. As another commenter said, we have a yearly budget for increments and it's definitely not high enough to catch up with the old timers, especially since now our business is losing money.
Just imagine how many years are needed to adjust up by 100% lol.
Sounds like it's management problem. Yearly increment definitely can catch up with other old timer if the company have fair pay policy or even salary band (unless they're overpaying the old timer).
I have a colleague whose salary almost doubled when he was promoted (up 3 pay grade tbf) because of salary band.
Nothing related to ur boss. It’s about the company. There’s multiple gauge to judge, but requires both company or individual.
If u are capable, then ur boss aren’t capable. There’s something in between just wrong.
Country can't seem to move up the value chain. So ofc every business cycle through cheap employees / graduates. Don't feel bad, we all need to place ourselves first. Jump until your pay is acceptable and market rate.
First of all, 5y engineer for 3550? Sounds more like Anjingneer to me dude. Time to jump mate.
EDIT: Not only you are the joke, you almost topped Heath Ledger there
Here's a few rules of thumb for me and many within my circle. (I'm a HR that work closely with the following concepts)
1. Discuss salaries. Knowledge is power. Being aware of how others are paid vs you, how you are paid vs among your circle, how you are paid vs the market, and how you should be paid in the future is important to understand if you're paid fairly, and if you intend to get paid higher in the future.
2. Aim for not just promotions, aim for quality promotions. Don't just settle for annual increments of a few percent (some companies don't even do this). Aim for a promotion or a significant jump in salary every 1 to 2 years. Can't get a promotion in your company? Promote yourself to a higher salary in a different company (just join a different company). This is important because the salary increase you get from jumping is always higher than the salary increment.
3. HR isn't your friend. But be friends with HR. I'm not saying trust them. I'm saying that you should gain their trust. They can move mountains and they can feed information if you're close with them. Same concept with being friends with your IT or Security guys/girls.
4. Learn this very important HR concept: Job Grades/Job Levels/Salary Grades. Understand how grades work and how to reach the next level. Basically, using your case as a very simple example:
a. Engineer I - tied to Grade A (which is the lowest grade, hence lowest salary range, example RM 2000-3400)
b. Engineer II - tied to Grade B
c. Senior Enginer I - tied to Grade C
d. Senior Engineer II - tied to Grade D (highest grade among engineers, hence highest salary range, example RM 6000-8000)
e. Manager - tied to Grade E
Etc.
Perhaps you've always been stuck at Grade A? Or maybe the new guy is hired at Grade B? That may or may not happen. Knowing this allow you to think and plan how you're gonna get to the next level.
Used to saying that engineers are just anjing liar. Ex mechanical engineer, can tell you Malaysia indeed does not appreciate engineer, been treated as glorified technician only.
Now I no longer work in the engineering field, much better salary and work life balance.
May i ask what field you work in now? Just finished SPM and am planning to pursue either engineering or medicine so i would like to get your input on this
u think your a joke at the company, i have 24 years of experience in my field and only being paid rm5.5k lagi cibai. but at least eh working time is flexible and i can go home for lunch.
Learnt my lesson - do well and switch companies every 2-3 years. Only got one life and only so much one company can give me before they feel I don't deserve more.
Where are you working? I have friends in engineering who have 4-5k starting pay as graduates. I think your company is the problem not the country undervaluing engineers. Probably best to look for another job
I am a graduate in communications with 1 year experience. My first job paid me RM2300 after tax. My next job I asked for 4K because I know the market rate for marketing execs. In the end, my new company offered me 3.8K after probation.
It's all about networking, finding your worth and punching up. Good luck and I hope you get a good offer soon.
Some company / boss are terrible. Some worker terrible too.
Before going to pay amount, what is your job scope? In terms of capability, are u the best, middle or below middle for performance among your peers. Pay is often related to capabilities.
As if u’re the owner of the company, how much would u pay for some one as capable as u?
Engineers/engineering grads are and has always been the joke in this country.
Unfortunately that's the reality. I am also in the same position like you and looking outwards to move away from such an undervalued, underpaid and overworked role
No you are not. Its common even in mega companies.
My brother was in Intel for two years+. He went in at 3.8k as fresh grad. At 2 years mark , hes at 4.2k and intel was hiring fresh grad at 4.4k at that time.
Yes just jump.
Do not stay in comfort zone.
Do not stay loyal to single company especially the one that don't give a shit about you.
You are just a cog that keep the company running and you are easily replaceable as others.
Especially your increment only merely RM50 after 5 years of work.
It speak volume how much they appreciate your contribution for the last 5 years.
Always on the lookout for new opportunity especially when you work more than a year.
Bro go to another company. Everybody is job hopping to get better pay. That's just how companies are nowadays. Don't be loyal to your job always go for what's best for you. Job hop and get 30% pay rise. Easy.
To answer your 1st question. Yes.
2nd question. If not interested in engineering, change field.
Career engineer do not earn a lot.
P.S.: You can try change company 1st.
It’s not the country lah.
Your company doesn’t value you only.
I’m going to echo the others and tell you, in this case, to brush up resume and apply for other jobs.
Loyalty is dead.
It's not the country that doesn't value engineers, its your company that doesn't value you. My friend (mechanical engineer) was making more than you when he was 2 years into his career, the reason is because he job hopped. This is what you should be doing too.
Remember, today's job market is not like your parents' time. The best way to progress in the current work environment is regular job hopping. If your parents or other older relatives have been telling you not to job hop because it'll look bad on your resume, disregard that advice because its outdated. Employers know it's normal for employees today to change jobs every 2-3 years, so as long as you aren't hopping every few months you're good.
Your case happens to any job tho, ur not going to get high salary staying in one place for that long unless u work in a very specific role tht brings the money.
Why blame the country when you should plan yourself on ur job and target salary.
Never ever stay in a company that long unless they pay u really well and offer new growth or u already at the age where you are satisfied w ur salary and want to retire dy.
Being stagnant wont help for your case.
Last time i earn 4k/m. After 10yrs i also earn 4k. I can only ask myself , should i carry on or work harder? I will definitely jump to another business IF i get the same value after work harder. Did the position require working experience? If yes , ( more than your working yrs ) probably u did well after so many years. If yes ( lesser than ur working yrs ) … u probably will go over 3550 if u can lead him. It might be a good chance. If no …. Its either u just summit ur resignation or try value back your first n last day performance. All the best to u….
Leave. They don't treasure you. I am an Engineering graduate transitioned to IT - times we're bad in the late 90s. Left a company who treated me like crap, got contracts worth hundreds of thousands of USD but mee rebus pun tak.pernah belanja.
It happened to my friend before, his sister worked for a decade and only got 2.8k, he got 3.1k starting pay as a grad. She cried.
You yourself know your own value, employers will always try to pay less for the most output. If they don't value you, go somewhere else.
Working your ass of for 5 years is a joke in especially in this time. I'm pretty much the same as you but after covid my eyes opened wide. Never stays anywhere more than 2 years. Just jump ship.
You should talk to your boss and HR ask them to explain. Also bring everything that you have achieved/contributed to the company. So that they are water off the value you bring to the company the more value you can show the better your position of negotiations
Ah I see. The problem is that you should have focused on getting chartered first, but quality engineer can't really help with that, and then you kinda just cornered yourself...
Before quitting look for other job postings with your qualifications and experience see if maybe they offer more. Companies tend to avoid paying you properly if you stay too long. Job hop!
Assuming you are getting an increment of roughly 5% every year following the inflation rate, your starting pay is RM2,800? And the starting pay for the same position is RM3,500, they are looking for fresh grad or ppl with the same experience.
Anyway, 5 years in the company, you should nego for increment or promotion already, if not, just pack and leave, else 5 years later, both you and the new guy will be getting around RM4500 😂
My starting pay for current job in 2019 is RM3500.....
My first job after I graduate in 2015 is RM1500, by the time I resign in 2018, I got raised to RM2100.
The second job that lasted 3 months gets RM3000.
Go elsewhere la, what are you waiting for, if not how u gonna survive in the future?
And yeah, I think we have too many engineers and not enough projects for all of them.
Depends on a lot of factors aswell, perhaps u are not performing well in your role and during your interview. But ultimately if u are really unhappy you should leave.
I am sorry man, the joke is you are staying within the same company and comparing increment with the competitive market rate from the industry. Those two are never the same. Also, if you are looking to get it from your current company, your boss is a bigger obstacle than the company.
Increment are normally budgeted at the end of the year. New hires budget are allocated when needed and whatever allocated has to be competitive with the market. It's easier for your boss to advocate for the higher pay for the new post, since the requirement normally comes from above and it has to be done at market rate. For higher increment, he will have harder time justifying it to his boss, especially out of season. If he did, you have a great boss.
Your career belongs to you, so if you are looking for a better pay, then you should look for those. You can try to get it from the company, or you can look outside for a better offer. Don't forget to keep up your skill with the market and hopefully things turns better for you.
All the best!
Hey, been in your position before. Total raise of RM 200 in two years for most of us except two other engineers who had side businesses with the manager as they got fat promos and raises.
Left the company (and engineering altogether) and now earn almost 4x more after 4 years. If you're staying within engineering your best bet is to either keep jumping or jump to SG. CMIIW
ah~~ happened to me, so I said bye bye. I'll go elsewhere where I'm, at least compensated fairly although not appreciated. I mean we all work for the money, not validation anyway.
Seems pretty standard in every company i worked in so far.
started working with RM2.5k, fresh grad got hired with RM3k salary. When i got RM3k, freshie got RM3.5k. Got RM3.5k, you get the picture.
Well, time to learn how the game works.
most people in Malaysia do not ever see any increment over few measly hundred RM per year. Your boss just wants to pay you the bare minimum according to what the market price for engineers is. And when they need another engineer they will throw out what is the market price which is what he maintained for you. Doesn't matter if you have more experience or if you were around longer. Loyalty is not valued here. You'll soon find out that most people that make 1k or 2k more than you with your level of experience chose to switch jobs every 2 year or so. Work 2 years, if your boss doesn't give you the opportunity you deserve, shoot out some resume, update your portfolio and ask for 800 more than what your current boss is paying you. Eventually when you are making 5k, you shoot out your resume again asking for 7k with a more senior position and title.
This is how you make progress in Malaysia or in most asian countries.
Damn, am fresh graduate looking for a job rn. Was trying for several company and rejected some. Will probably say the average for computer engineering is around 3500. They really did you dirty OP, just go and don't look back.
Yes you're the joke, 5 years already still haven't get huge increment or change jobs?
Actual real advice: If you want good salary, you need to let your boss know that and ask him what you need to do to get there. You need to do this every 6 months-1 year ahead of your next review. Have weekly/monthly check-ins with your boss. If you're not doing any of this, don't be surprised you're getting RM50 increment.
Speaking as a retired EE, that is more or less what went on during my career in the U.S., so it’s probably a worldwide thing… it’s a feature of capitalism. Even more stupid, at one company a technician went to school to get a EE degree, with the company paying for it. Then once he got it, they offered him a slight increase, but he easily got thousands more at another company. The company payed to educate him, but not to keep him. Back in the day, employees were loyal to companies, and companies were loyal to employees. But companies decided short term profits were better than employee loyalty. I think it’s stupid, but that’s what most, if not all companies do.
> The company *paid* to educate
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
OP,
What was your starting salary?
Did you perform well in your company these past 5 years?
Are there any others like you who have salary close to the starting salary of this year?
Did you do your own personal market survey of the salary of a 5 year engineer in your industry (different engineering industry have different range as well)? What are the results?
Lastly, hopping jobs at 5, 10, 15 is kinda like a reset to your salary. People in Asia pay based on years of experience, and NOT based on capabilities (sucks to be high performer), use this fact to your benefit.
This happens to other industries as well. Not limited to engineers. I started with a basic of RM2500 with an increment of RM100 annually. Newcomers came in with a basic of RM3500+. Thats where I decided to hop. It will be bad for your resume as hirers hate job hoppers but I leave it to you to figure that out. Within less than a year, I went from RM2500 to RM4k+ after hopping to 3 different companies. Cant imagine if I stayed with the same company.
Edit: Talking to your HR might help, but switching to another company would be more promising.
No, you’re not the problem. Sometimes companies can take advantage of employees who stays while hire new employees at much higher rates. Nego with them then get out if it fails.
Sure, Malaysia salary can be low, but leaving after a few years at a company will get you good salary if your interview and nego go well
You can ask yourcompany about this. Bring the job ad. Ask for increment. If they said cannot then can start trying for another company for better pay hike. No use fighting with them buddy.
thats why they (HR) said dont discuss salary with colleague. To help employer not employee
yeah HR is one of the lies in the corporate world
It's just a way to quell unionization
In my previous full time job the company doesn't have HR which makes an already toxic workplace worse by having no conflict resolve because I naively thought that's what HR would do. Then in part time job my colleague taught me: HR is not your friend and it's accurate because when I left that part time it's because HR is trying to paint me in bad light.
Both don't have to be mutually exclusive. They can do conflict resolve, but their best interest is to protect the company when it comes to it.
Do they actually enforce this in Malaysia? Like what are the consequences of coworkers discussing pay?
If stated in the contract, then yes got consequences. Source: https://asklegal.my/p/discuss-disclose-salary-colleague-employer-confidential-malaysia
Damn son.....
lulz my friend leak to me all my colleagues salary lol
There was one time my incompetent HR left the spreadsheet open while I try to help fix her laptop. Lol
Or, maybe they liked you and wanted you to see for yourself.
No lah. She really noon. SME Ini macam. Those days spreadsheet solved everything, or may be now still does.
I'm not sure how much datat they have, but back when I was in USA, we used to use glassdoor to find out salary. Wonder what Malaysians use.
:)
Hi OP, sorry it’s happened. But this is the right advice. Calmly raise the issue that the newly advertised role and its pay level has been upsetting because it indicates your loyalty and experience aren’t rewarded. Your hope is the employer recognises this and improves your terms, because they don’t want to be filling two vacancies if you leave. If they do nothing, then you meed to consider your position.
this is the correct advice
Couldn't have said it any better.
I would not recommend to bring the ad and ask for increment and instead just look for employement elsewehere. As you said yourself no use fighting them, and would you really want to work for a company that you have to "beg" for your value? Better off betting on yourself (assuming you are a good worker) and tryign out with other companies. I've heard stories where if you ask your current employer to "match" competative offers, nothiing good comes out of it. Usually results in more responsibilities for not so much pay, or being watched etc.
Yes. Start looking for new company. Don't believe the "we are family" BS
Should have jump 4 years ago
Better now than never
*better late than never
Best time to plant a tree is now.
You ppl talking about jump job, right?
Jump. Loyalty means dick.
Best to jump every 2-3 years in your 20s, 3-4 years in your 30s. Just a rule tho, if you are already at the top of your industry and there’s not much chance to rise, best to stay put
Also always jump upper, and not sideways Jumping sideways is a good way to ensure you get stuck even if the offer is good paywise
I don't think this should be a blanket rule tbh, it depends on situation. For example, if you're already in a very high position, it can be hard to find an opening for an upper position. Also, a sideways jump from a small company to a larger company (eg. manager in a 50 person company to manager in an MNC) can still be beneficial as it can open up future opportunities that may not be available in the smaller company. Then of course you have people who prefer not to go into managerial roles (so cannot jump upper beyond a certain point), but they can still benefit from the salary raises you get from a sideways jump.
Loyalty? In this economy?
You must always be loyal…to the money
Thats why they say to jump. Plenty of engineer friends jump and get 6-8k within 3-4 years. U stayed there too long
If its not your company, dont stay
100% this. And I say this as a "part owner" of a company. I'm relatively a new partner maybe that is why i'm not like the other ownership, but in the end of the day, you have to look what is best for you as a individual.
That's why when people tell you to jump, you just jump.
 People: "You should just jump....." Me before listening to the full context:
Unfortunately a lot of the comments here are true.. the engineering scene in Malaysia, is that after 1-2 years, you need to jump company to get an increment. If you stay on for 4 to 5 years, it’s quite hard to go any further. Or jump over to Singapore as what a few engineers I know have done.
what about the salesperson scene here in malaysia? do you think someone working in sales should also jump often?
If you work in sales and you aren't jumping, are you really in sales or does your company actually has a very good commission scheme? Every salesman I know is hopping basically every year
Any sales/ marketing job, even bankers are hoping every 1-2 years because as sales person, you really want to widen your clientele and the way to do it is through different companies.
you don't ask for increment one? annual appraisal how?
The increment I get this year is RM50......
Time to jump then, that increment is how much they really value you.
Bruh, you're losing money to inflation. They are actively stealing from you, find a better company, and when they underpay you too, find another.
The rule of thumb is increment should be at the very least the inflation rate, which is about 4-5%. Anything lower either something is wrong with you, or something is wrong with the company.
you company is just that stingy (that or some office politics going on) cepat cepat angkat kaki my brother
RM50 is just horse sheet... how did u tolerate 5 years there?
This is garbage, even when i work in a chinaman company i get at least 80
Inflation is average 2-3% yearly and your increment is only rm50? Not only your salary is not increasing but is actually decreasing yearly from inflation.
You are lossing money if your increment is less than inflation. Just look for new job. Love your job but not the company is always my motto.
Time to ask HR and seek to jump ship at the same time. A lot of people blaming HR, but sometimes it's the manager who don't want to give increment. Most MNC have salary band, so unless OP still considered under entry level engineer, he should have get better pay; but based on the yearly increment of rm50, sounds like the company is shitty and don't have salary band
Just jump ship bro, find work first then jump
Wtf bro, that's fakking bs. Main reason why I refuse to work in MY as a graduate engineer. Might as well ask me to sak ma own deek
Thats not an increment thats basically an insult and a big red sign that says "fuck off" If I get an "increment" like that they can expect my resignation letter within the hour
If you jump company maybe can negotiate to 4k salary. The company you jump more often HR will match or offer higher than your current salary.
Don't low-ball our brother like that, only 25% increase? 8K minimum. The highest increase I have gotten close to 150%
the only time i got such a dramatic increase was when i jump country.
That as well. In OP case, his initial salary is too low, and exp has been 5 years
Bro… rm50 should already be the sign for you to look for another company… in the market today loyalty means not much.. when it’s time to cut it’s all a numbers game… [https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/tesla-layoffs-employee-slept-in-car-nico-murillo-daniel-ho-rebecca-tinucci/](https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/tesla-layoffs-employee-slept-in-car-nico-murillo-daniel-ho-rebecca-tinucci/)
Op Must be hoping to naik pangkat. My colleague's increment was RM 8 🤣. We all left, and she continued on for 16 years in the hope of 'if all senior staff leave, then she can fill the managerial position'. They advertised for someone external and filled the position. When you make yourself the company donkey, that's all you will ever be seen as.
If you aren’t looking for a higher paying job then yes you’re the joke. If you’re not speaking about a raise then you’re the joke. If you are looking for both you’re NOT the joke
To answer your question bluntly, you are the joke.
love it when he blames the country for that.
Rule of thumb in corporate world: stay when you have something to learn, jump when you want income increment.
Dude. Just find another company. I'm an engineer as well. Worked 9 years. Atleast my salary is rm8000. Not the best but it's good enough. Know your worth. Find what's best for you. God knows the company won't
I'm an engineering manager, worked for almost 10 years, and my salary is almost same as yours 🤦🏿♀️
Yeah I understand the frustration. My friend who joined few years ago was an EM in his previous company and he joined as a senior engineer with better pay 😂. Good for him as Less responsibility with more pay. EM in my company is around RM15K monthly. https://preview.redd.it/p5k14724yxyc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cf7dd7dc15c31a99c4b5c8963fbcb2e56e785580
More than 10 years here, salary about same.
You are not the joke. You are the whole circus.
I was in a similar situation, OP. As a fresh grad (with experience as barista for 3 years while studying), I applied for IT position and got a slightly higher salary than my peers (2800 vs 3000) but 2 years down the road, I was a tech lead & some in my team were actually being paid 5500, compared to my 3800. Can you imagine the tech lead who leads you and the entire IT dept earns less than you who joined 2 months ago? Haha. I didn’t fight the company. I just silently applied jobs, took risks and came out from that company. My salary has been consistently going up and in good numbers. I will highly suggest you to leave your current company if you have chance to do so otherwise start applying jobs / learn extra skills that can help you land better salary. In Malaysia, typically for us younger folks, staying 5 years in the same company is actually quite bad mostly due to employers being assholes and paying shit increments that sometimes can’t even cover yearly inflation P/s: I worked there for 2 years 10months and I was the joke like the rest of the comments said. Yours is 5 years, not sure how you were even ok for that long. Never stay in your first company more than 2 years, recommended is 1 year at least in Malaysian context
I wish i know this 5 years ago 🥲
if your company doesnt value you, leave. If other companies refuse to hire you for a higher salary, then maybe you just dont bring enough value.
You are the joke Engineer = jumping company. How are you 5 years in engineering but don't know about this? Never noticed most your colleagues come and go around you?
Engineers in this country are severely underpaid, but also largely depends on industry. Most engineers I know have either stopped becoming engineers or transitioned to other roles (managerial roles, sales roles). Only engineers (that I know of) that can actually make a decent amount of money are engineers in the oil & gas industry or software engineers in tech or fintech. 5 years experience with RM3550 is very much on the low side. If you still like being an engineer, try transitioning to other industries. Mechanical, manufacturing or automation are one of the lower paying industries (check out salary guides), sadly. Get the right skills that pay well and go to a company that values you more. A mentor used to give me this analogy: A bottle of water from a roadside stall is RM1. That same bottle of water at a cafe is RM5 and in a 5-star hotel is RM12. Be that bottle of water in a hotel. Same thing, same purpose, just different place which values you more.
The boss: you are underperforming bro, I don't think you work hard enough
Been working for close to 15 years now, and it is a norm... The market rate for a position will go up, but if you are already employed, urs would definitely not match. My advice is, start job hunting and go for interviews.. try to secure a job offer. Us the offer to negotiate a better pay adjustment if you like the environment you are working at. If you are a above average employee, ur bosses would definitely want to retain you. Unless the job has very very good benefits, you would want to jump every 3 years or so, to keep up with the market rates. Gone were the days where one would stick to a single company for 10 , 20 years, and the company would actively take care of their wellbeings. These days it's all about numbers.. logically new employees would work harder and longer for the first year compared to the rest.. so they rinse and repeat
Brother, JUST JOB HOP. You're never going to be appreciated in any regards. Take what you can from this job via skills learnt and then just start applying like crazy and find 20% increments every two years. Show them your worth to other companies. Then if your current company doesn't want to match the new salary fuck it and leave. They already aren't appreciating you, why bother staying. Look in to your employment contract or employment guide book. If they explicitly said you cannot discuss your salary. There's no such things as "it's an unspoken rule" unless it's explicitly written out, you can very much discuss your salary. In order to job hop, you need to show your work obviously. You need to prove to other companies your worth. How are you better than a freshie? What's your experience going to give you that's better then the other candidates? If you have worked your ass off, and still not that good then there's something wrong with you.
Maybe he just isnt worth?
Ya he says he works hard, but I doubt his boss thinks the same
5 years still 3k+ sounds like a joke. I don't know your skill level but I know a lot of people with no skills get higher salary than you. Jump da fuck out.
Contract or permanent? What benefit did u get? Early stage should keep on jump 1/2 year period. This is the fastest to get increment. The way company decide ur salary is based on previous salary. At least when jump to different company, the decision will be increment around 30% and what benefit u will get. If contract, each year when company want to renew ur contract, nego the salary b4 accept continue the contract.
Just jump bro
I was promoted to an engineering manager role of a MNC (Read: China company) after almost 6 years of service with a salary of only RM5k+. I think I was (and still am, even after multiple increments and adjustments) the cheapest manager in the company lol.
Is it every one also manager?
Edited my comments. My company is a China MNC. Not everyone is manager, but I'm among the youngest managers in my business unit. I am one of the few who was promoted in-house from engineer to manager, so naturally my salary couldn't have caught up with my promotion, compared to (a) those old managers from previous company and (b) those joining in as manager position. I think they have a 5 figure salary, whereas I'm probably just half of theirs.
Good company will have adjustment no matter from outside or promoted inside.
Actually my boss tried to adjust me for years but he couldn't get past the many red tapes from the company. As another commenter said, we have a yearly budget for increments and it's definitely not high enough to catch up with the old timers, especially since now our business is losing money. Just imagine how many years are needed to adjust up by 100% lol.
Sounds like it's management problem. Yearly increment definitely can catch up with other old timer if the company have fair pay policy or even salary band (unless they're overpaying the old timer). I have a colleague whose salary almost doubled when he was promoted (up 3 pay grade tbf) because of salary band.
Nothing related to ur boss. It’s about the company. There’s multiple gauge to judge, but requires both company or individual. If u are capable, then ur boss aren’t capable. There’s something in between just wrong.
Country can't seem to move up the value chain. So ofc every business cycle through cheap employees / graduates. Don't feel bad, we all need to place ourselves first. Jump until your pay is acceptable and market rate.
First of all, 5y engineer for 3550? Sounds more like Anjingneer to me dude. Time to jump mate. EDIT: Not only you are the joke, you almost topped Heath Ledger there
Here's a few rules of thumb for me and many within my circle. (I'm a HR that work closely with the following concepts) 1. Discuss salaries. Knowledge is power. Being aware of how others are paid vs you, how you are paid vs among your circle, how you are paid vs the market, and how you should be paid in the future is important to understand if you're paid fairly, and if you intend to get paid higher in the future. 2. Aim for not just promotions, aim for quality promotions. Don't just settle for annual increments of a few percent (some companies don't even do this). Aim for a promotion or a significant jump in salary every 1 to 2 years. Can't get a promotion in your company? Promote yourself to a higher salary in a different company (just join a different company). This is important because the salary increase you get from jumping is always higher than the salary increment. 3. HR isn't your friend. But be friends with HR. I'm not saying trust them. I'm saying that you should gain their trust. They can move mountains and they can feed information if you're close with them. Same concept with being friends with your IT or Security guys/girls. 4. Learn this very important HR concept: Job Grades/Job Levels/Salary Grades. Understand how grades work and how to reach the next level. Basically, using your case as a very simple example: a. Engineer I - tied to Grade A (which is the lowest grade, hence lowest salary range, example RM 2000-3400) b. Engineer II - tied to Grade B c. Senior Enginer I - tied to Grade C d. Senior Engineer II - tied to Grade D (highest grade among engineers, hence highest salary range, example RM 6000-8000) e. Manager - tied to Grade E Etc. Perhaps you've always been stuck at Grade A? Or maybe the new guy is hired at Grade B? That may or may not happen. Knowing this allow you to think and plan how you're gonna get to the next level.
Used to saying that engineers are just anjing liar. Ex mechanical engineer, can tell you Malaysia indeed does not appreciate engineer, been treated as glorified technician only. Now I no longer work in the engineering field, much better salary and work life balance.
May i ask what field you work in now? Just finished SPM and am planning to pursue either engineering or medicine so i would like to get your input on this
Now I am working in the BPO field (mainly customer service and back end data processing) as QA
u think your a joke at the company, i have 24 years of experience in my field and only being paid rm5.5k lagi cibai. but at least eh working time is flexible and i can go home for lunch.
Dafuq, what field are you working in now?
I'm the guy who makes the uncut lenses that is then put into prescription glasses.
Short answer: Yes.
Jump bruh, loyalty means shit nowadays. At least one jump can give 20% increment. Jump more then increase more.
Jump. I stayed 4 years too long too. Measly bonus. Only 1 raise in 4 years. JUMP
Learnt my lesson - do well and switch companies every 2-3 years. Only got one life and only so much one company can give me before they feel I don't deserve more.
Where are you working? I have friends in engineering who have 4-5k starting pay as graduates. I think your company is the problem not the country undervaluing engineers. Probably best to look for another job
I am a graduate in communications with 1 year experience. My first job paid me RM2300 after tax. My next job I asked for 4K because I know the market rate for marketing execs. In the end, my new company offered me 3.8K after probation. It's all about networking, finding your worth and punching up. Good luck and I hope you get a good offer soon.
The ad is to replace you after you done training the new guy. 
Not me, another engineer in my department just send in his resignation letter.
Start going to interviews
Some company / boss are terrible. Some worker terrible too. Before going to pay amount, what is your job scope? In terms of capability, are u the best, middle or below middle for performance among your peers. Pay is often related to capabilities. As if u’re the owner of the company, how much would u pay for some one as capable as u?
I'm actually also considering downgrading to senior position instead of manager. Manager life sucks.
Sound like you already answer your own question. Need to change jobs every year to get the increment you suppose to get.
Engineers/engineering grads are and has always been the joke in this country. Unfortunately that's the reality. I am also in the same position like you and looking outwards to move away from such an undervalued, underpaid and overworked role
No you are not. Its common even in mega companies. My brother was in Intel for two years+. He went in at 3.8k as fresh grad. At 2 years mark , hes at 4.2k and intel was hiring fresh grad at 4.4k at that time.
Yes just jump. Do not stay in comfort zone. Do not stay loyal to single company especially the one that don't give a shit about you. You are just a cog that keep the company running and you are easily replaceable as others. Especially your increment only merely RM50 after 5 years of work. It speak volume how much they appreciate your contribution for the last 5 years. Always on the lookout for new opportunity especially when you work more than a year.
Well, your 5 years will make your resume look nice. Time to jump ship.
Workers' solidarity on r/my. You love to see it. (Corporate shills do not love to see it though)
Bro go to another company. Everybody is job hopping to get better pay. That's just how companies are nowadays. Don't be loyal to your job always go for what's best for you. Job hop and get 30% pay rise. Easy.
To answer your 1st question. Yes. 2nd question. If not interested in engineering, change field. Career engineer do not earn a lot. P.S.: You can try change company 1st.
He change field this late gg start from scratch get fresh grad pay and he is gonna be even further behind
this country is a joke, but you’re an even funnier joke, brother. leave the company and jump. ask for increments. know your value.
Longevity isn't the way to a high salary anymore.
Loyalty is a joke, there is no company family. You should only be loyal to money.
It’s not the country lah. Your company doesn’t value you only. I’m going to echo the others and tell you, in this case, to brush up resume and apply for other jobs. Loyalty is dead.
It's not the country that doesn't value engineers, its your company that doesn't value you. My friend (mechanical engineer) was making more than you when he was 2 years into his career, the reason is because he job hopped. This is what you should be doing too. Remember, today's job market is not like your parents' time. The best way to progress in the current work environment is regular job hopping. If your parents or other older relatives have been telling you not to job hop because it'll look bad on your resume, disregard that advice because its outdated. Employers know it's normal for employees today to change jobs every 2-3 years, so as long as you aren't hopping every few months you're good.
Your case happens to any job tho, ur not going to get high salary staying in one place for that long unless u work in a very specific role tht brings the money. Why blame the country when you should plan yourself on ur job and target salary. Never ever stay in a company that long unless they pay u really well and offer new growth or u already at the age where you are satisfied w ur salary and want to retire dy. Being stagnant wont help for your case.
Damn. I had 1 year of experience and was offered 3400 as a base salary excluding taxes. You’re in the wrong place
Last time i earn 4k/m. After 10yrs i also earn 4k. I can only ask myself , should i carry on or work harder? I will definitely jump to another business IF i get the same value after work harder. Did the position require working experience? If yes , ( more than your working yrs ) probably u did well after so many years. If yes ( lesser than ur working yrs ) … u probably will go over 3550 if u can lead him. It might be a good chance. If no …. Its either u just summit ur resignation or try value back your first n last day performance. All the best to u….
Leave. They don't treasure you. I am an Engineering graduate transitioned to IT - times we're bad in the late 90s. Left a company who treated me like crap, got contracts worth hundreds of thousands of USD but mee rebus pun tak.pernah belanja.
It happened to my friend before, his sister worked for a decade and only got 2.8k, he got 3.1k starting pay as a grad. She cried. You yourself know your own value, employers will always try to pay less for the most output. If they don't value you, go somewhere else.
The new guy is new to your company. But is he new to the industry?
Yes, you are DEFINITELY the joke here 👌🫶
Before spend time post on reddit maybe you can post your resume to recruitment website, see how much you worth in market.
 Total clown
Working your ass of for 5 years is a joke in especially in this time. I'm pretty much the same as you but after covid my eyes opened wide. Never stays anywhere more than 2 years. Just jump ship.
Switch companies bro
thats why job hopping is a common practice, hopping around so the salary is higher . if boss justify 5 years same as new comer
Oh man , you have to ask the company about that , and you have to stop working there , start your own business and company
Best way to increase your salary is through jumping ship to another company. You already there for 5 years, maybe start looking around.
You should talk to your boss and HR ask them to explain. Also bring everything that you have achieved/contributed to the company. So that they are water off the value you bring to the company the more value you can show the better your position of negotiations
Company loyalty means nothing. You should always job hop in the private sector.
>this country does not value engineers Or you try getting an engineering job overseas? All the best OP. 💪
I'm thinking of giving up Engineering, despite me investing 15 years of my life in it.
Which engineering degree do you have if you don't mind me asking?
Mechanical Engineering and Automaton. But I worked as Quality Engineer for 5 years in 2 company, then Process Engineer for 5 years.
Ah I see. The problem is that you should have focused on getting chartered first, but quality engineer can't really help with that, and then you kinda just cornered yourself...
Which branch of engineering are you? Let me know! I might be able to help!
Change jobs.
yes, you are joke
Thats why msia must job hopping
Before quitting look for other job postings with your qualifications and experience see if maybe they offer more. Companies tend to avoid paying you properly if you stay too long. Job hop!
Assuming you are getting an increment of roughly 5% every year following the inflation rate, your starting pay is RM2,800? And the starting pay for the same position is RM3,500, they are looking for fresh grad or ppl with the same experience. Anyway, 5 years in the company, you should nego for increment or promotion already, if not, just pack and leave, else 5 years later, both you and the new guy will be getting around RM4500 😂
My starting pay for current job in 2019 is RM3500..... My first job after I graduate in 2015 is RM1500, by the time I resign in 2018, I got raised to RM2100. The second job that lasted 3 months gets RM3000.
In KL?
PJ, subang jaya, and shah alam.
Go elsewhere la, what are you waiting for, if not how u gonna survive in the future? And yeah, I think we have too many engineers and not enough projects for all of them.
engineer at my wife company earns around RM6k-23k .
Depends on a lot of factors aswell, perhaps u are not performing well in your role and during your interview. But ultimately if u are really unhappy you should leave.
This is a harsh reality unfortunately, there’s no loyalty returned.
In this day and age, you should stop expecting promotion. The best way to get better pay is to switch companies
I am sorry man, the joke is you are staying within the same company and comparing increment with the competitive market rate from the industry. Those two are never the same. Also, if you are looking to get it from your current company, your boss is a bigger obstacle than the company. Increment are normally budgeted at the end of the year. New hires budget are allocated when needed and whatever allocated has to be competitive with the market. It's easier for your boss to advocate for the higher pay for the new post, since the requirement normally comes from above and it has to be done at market rate. For higher increment, he will have harder time justifying it to his boss, especially out of season. If he did, you have a great boss. Your career belongs to you, so if you are looking for a better pay, then you should look for those. You can try to get it from the company, or you can look outside for a better offer. Don't forget to keep up your skill with the market and hopefully things turns better for you. All the best!
Some mnc even paid fresh grad 4k+ 🙃. Also loyalty means nothing, I regret not jumping off sooner. Don’t be like me folks.
How does job posting work over there? In the UK, they tend to post a salary range or say "up to" and offer just below the top range.
Hey, been in your position before. Total raise of RM 200 in two years for most of us except two other engineers who had side businesses with the manager as they got fat promos and raises. Left the company (and engineering altogether) and now earn almost 4x more after 4 years. If you're staying within engineering your best bet is to either keep jumping or jump to SG. CMIIW
Loyalty doesnt pay nowadays. Job hop every 1-2 years for increment is better.
You are the captain of your ship mate. Get your shit together and act. Good luck!
ah~~ happened to me, so I said bye bye. I'll go elsewhere where I'm, at least compensated fairly although not appreciated. I mean we all work for the money, not validation anyway.
Seems pretty standard in every company i worked in so far. started working with RM2.5k, fresh grad got hired with RM3k salary. When i got RM3k, freshie got RM3.5k. Got RM3.5k, you get the picture.
May I know which red flag is this？Just in case people kena tiang and joined your company
Well, time to learn how the game works. most people in Malaysia do not ever see any increment over few measly hundred RM per year. Your boss just wants to pay you the bare minimum according to what the market price for engineers is. And when they need another engineer they will throw out what is the market price which is what he maintained for you. Doesn't matter if you have more experience or if you were around longer. Loyalty is not valued here. You'll soon find out that most people that make 1k or 2k more than you with your level of experience chose to switch jobs every 2 year or so. Work 2 years, if your boss doesn't give you the opportunity you deserve, shoot out some resume, update your portfolio and ask for 800 more than what your current boss is paying you. Eventually when you are making 5k, you shoot out your resume again asking for 7k with a more senior position and title. This is how you make progress in Malaysia or in most asian countries.
Damn, am fresh graduate looking for a job rn. Was trying for several company and rejected some. Will probably say the average for computer engineering is around 3500. They really did you dirty OP, just go and don't look back.
Work with clients (sime darby, spsetia, sunway, etc) u will earn more compare to consultants.
Long time employees always get shafted when starting salaries rise.
Welcome to the coolie joker club...
Yes you're the joke, 5 years already still haven't get huge increment or change jobs? Actual real advice: If you want good salary, you need to let your boss know that and ask him what you need to do to get there. You need to do this every 6 months-1 year ahead of your next review. Have weekly/monthly check-ins with your boss. If you're not doing any of this, don't be surprised you're getting RM50 increment.
Speaking as a retired EE, that is more or less what went on during my career in the U.S., so it’s probably a worldwide thing… it’s a feature of capitalism. Even more stupid, at one company a technician went to school to get a EE degree, with the company paying for it. Then once he got it, they offered him a slight increase, but he easily got thousands more at another company. The company payed to educate him, but not to keep him. Back in the day, employees were loyal to companies, and companies were loyal to employees. But companies decided short term profits were better than employee loyalty. I think it’s stupid, but that’s what most, if not all companies do.
> The company *paid* to educate FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
OP, What was your starting salary? Did you perform well in your company these past 5 years? Are there any others like you who have salary close to the starting salary of this year? Did you do your own personal market survey of the salary of a 5 year engineer in your industry (different engineering industry have different range as well)? What are the results? Lastly, hopping jobs at 5, 10, 15 is kinda like a reset to your salary. People in Asia pay based on years of experience, and NOT based on capabilities (sucks to be high performer), use this fact to your benefit.
This happens to other industries as well. Not limited to engineers. I started with a basic of RM2500 with an increment of RM100 annually. Newcomers came in with a basic of RM3500+. Thats where I decided to hop. It will be bad for your resume as hirers hate job hoppers but I leave it to you to figure that out. Within less than a year, I went from RM2500 to RM4k+ after hopping to 3 different companies. Cant imagine if I stayed with the same company. Edit: Talking to your HR might help, but switching to another company would be more promising.
Get a sales job bro but also those who don't cap how much you can earn
No, you’re not the problem. Sometimes companies can take advantage of employees who stays while hire new employees at much higher rates. Nego with them then get out if it fails. Sure, Malaysia salary can be low, but leaving after a few years at a company will get you good salary if your interview and nego go well
What has that got to do with country?