A Study on Supply and Demand of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Workforce in Automotive Aftermarket Industry

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Sales Representatives in small-sized companies. This contributes to a large total number of Sales
Representatives required in MSIC G453 section, where it is forecasted to be almost 19,000
personnel are required by year 2025. Modular or short courses that adapt with the ever-changing
industry requirements and modern technologies such as digital marketing training are essential in
order to meet the growing demand of this job position.

Figure 4-40: Required workforce for Vehicle Parts and Accessories Sales by year 2025 (Micro-sized
companies)

Figure 4-41: Required workforce for Vehicle Parts and Accessories Sales by year 2025 (Small-sized
companies)

4.5 Sales, Maintenance, and 78
Motorcycles and Related
Accessories (MSIC G454) Repair of
Parts and
4.5.1 Current Workforce

MSIC G454 section is mainly focused on motorcycles repair and services, as well as sales and
installation of motorcycles’ parts and accessories. In this section, most of the companies are divided
into micro-sized and small-sized companies while the job positions can also be divided into two
categories: Sales and Services and Technician. Sales and Services category consists of the
following job positions: Head of Sales, Senior Sales Advisor, Sales Advisor, Service/Operation
Manager, and Service/Operation Executive. Meanwhile, Technician category refers to job positions
that involve maintenance and repair technical knowledge, such as Master/Diagnostic Technician,
Senior Technician, Technician, and Helper/Assistant.

As shown in Figure 4-42, the largest number of job positions in micro-sized companies for
Sales and Services category is Head of Sales, which is 56% of the total workforce in this category.
This is followed by the Service/Operation Manager, which is 26%. In contrast, Figure 4-43 shows
the ratios of Head of Sales and Service/Operation Manager are being reduced to 35% and 15%,
respectively. As every company must have a person who leads and manages the sales and
operations of the company, companies with a small number of workforces tend to have lead positions
only in Sales and Service category. This is the reason why managerial position workforce such as
Head of Sales or Service/Operation Manager in micro-sized companies is more common. These
companies operate with less than four workers per company. However, for small-sized companies,
the ratios of Senior Sales Advisor, Sales Advisor, or Service/Operation executive positions are bigger
because these companies have a much bigger total workforce, which is 5 to 29 personnel as per
definition.

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Figure 4-42: Distribution of job positions for Sales and Services category (Micro-sized companies)

Figure 4-43: Distribution of job positions for Sales and Services category (Small-sized companies)
For Technician category, both micro and small-sized companies exhibit almost the same

distribution for every position. The largest number of workforce in this category is Technician. This
shows that regardless of the company size, most companies have every technical position.

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Figure 4-44: Distribution of job positions for Technician category (Micro-sized companies)

Figure 4-45: Distribution of job positions for Technician category (Small-sized companies)
The analysis on the educational background of the current workforce for this MSIC section

found that majority of the workforce, either in micro or small-sized companies, are from SPM leavers
and followed by SKM holders. Only Figure 4-47 shows that small-sized companies hired more
workers with diploma background in Sales and Service category. Based on the survey, a large

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amount of SPM leavers in the Sales and Services category of micro-sized companies are due to that
the higher education level is not a priority as long as the workers have a good attitude and are able
to make sales. However, as the size of the companies becomes bigger, the ability as a salesperson
such as better communication skills and customer service, as well as administration skills will
become important. These qualities usually come from higher education holders, such as the diploma
holders.

Figure 4-46: Education background for Sales and Services category (Micro-sized companies)

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Figure 4-47: Education background for Sales and Services category (Small-sized companies)
Similarly, technical workforce in MSIC G454 section are mostly SPM leavers and followed by

SKM and certificate holders for micro-sized companies. Most of the technicians with these
backgrounds indicate that persons with skills certificates are preferable to be Technicians. However,
a large number of SPM leavers in the technical workforce compared to other positions are largely
due to that motorcycle repairs and services are not as complex as cars and can be trained in-house
by the companies. Meanwhile, diploma holders fill the positions that require higher skill sets, such
as Master/Diagnostic Technician and Senior Technician positions. This trend becomes more
noticeable in small-sized companies as depicted in Figure 4-49.

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Figure 4-48: Education background for Technician category (Micro-sized companies)
Figure 4-49: Education background for Technician category (Small-sized companies)

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Figure 4-50: Salary for Sales and Services personnel by job positions (MSIC G454)

Figure 4-51: Salary for Technician by job positions (MSIC G454)

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Figure 4-50 and Figure 4-51 show the salary of various job positions in MSIC G454 section. These
findings were obtained directly from the employers and human resource department of the
companies involved in the survey. For MSIC G454 section, the maximum salary for Sales and
Services personnel is higher than the Technicians. Looking at the job positions in Figure 4-50, the
highest position for Sales and Services is the Head of Sales. For this position, there is no salary
difference between SKM and Non-SKM holders. Same goes for the Service or Operation Manager.
At the managerial level, the knowledge and experience will be valued and considered more than the
practical skills to hold the positions. The minimum salary for the Head of Sales is around RM1,900
per month. After several years, the range can go up to a maximum of RM3,300 per month, which is
about 42% increment. For the Service or Operation Manager, the minimum salary is about RM1,100
per month. Along the way, the salary will increase and go up to a maximum of 54% increment, which
gives the maximum salary of RM2,400 per month. However, starting from Senior Sales Advisor
position and below, the practical skills are more important and valued. The maximum salary for SKM
holders is slightly higher than the Non-SKM holders, which is about 5.45% difference. For Sales
Advisor, the minimum salaries for SKM holders and Non-SKM holders are approximately RM1,500
and RM1,200, respectively. Based on performance, the salary for SKM holders can increase up to
RM2,600 per month while for the Non-SKM holders, the maximum salary can go up to approximately
RM1,900 per month.

Figure 4-51 illustrates the results for Technician salary per month for this MSIC code. The
highest position for Technician is Master/Diagnostic Technician. From this research, the results
obtained showed that Technicians at all levels, with the hands-on or practical skill competencies, will
get higher wages.

4.5.2 Forecast Workforce

The collective data from this MSIC section show the average attrition or turnover rate of 5% per
annum for small-sized companies and 10% per annum for micro-sized companies. Considering the
attrition rate, micro and small-sized companies for MSIC G454 section require more Head of Sales
in Sales and Services category compared to other positions. The number of required Head of Sales
for micro-sized companies in the next five years is estimated to be 1,080 personnel while for small-
sized companies is 307 personnel. Thus, the total number of Head of Sales required is 1387
personnel or in average 277 Heads of Sales are needed every year until 2025.

Based on the survey, the additional number of Heads of Sales is usually linked to the planning
of the companies to increase their branches. Therefore, the trends depicted in Figure 4-52 and Figure
4-53 indicate that the MSIC G454 companies, i.e., motorcycle services and maintenance companies,

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are growing in the number of branches for the next five years. These also indicate that they require
more workers with finance and management skills. In addition, unlike small-sized companies, Figure
4-52 also shows that micro-sized companies require approximately the same number of additional
Service/Operation Managers and Executives. This requirement is linked to the planning of the micro-
sized companies to expand their operations by adding more workers or enlarge their capacities or
facilities, hence will evolve into the status of small-sized companies. Meanwhile, the additional
number of Sales Advisors but without any increment of the Service/Operation Managers or
Executives as shown in Figure 4-53 indicates that majority of small-sized companies will not increase
in size but in number of branches. This fact also explains the current situation where medium-sized
companies for motorcycle repair and services are rare in Malaysia and the number of companies in
such category is not growing for the next five years.

Figure 4-52: Required workforce for Sales and Services category by year 2025 (Micro-sized
companies)

Figure 4-53: Required workforce for Sales and Services category by year 2025 (Small-sized
companies)

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Meanwhile, the forecast analysis on additional technical workforce concluded that technician
position is required the most for both micro and small-sized companies. Approximately, a total of
1929 technicians are required in year 2025. This is supported by the companies’ planning to expand
their branches where the technical workers are the main position needed for the business. Moreover,
as micro-sized companies expand their branches, as well as their size, as shown in Figure 4-54,
they require a large number of Master/Diagnostic Technician positions and Senior Technician
positions to support the expanding operations. On the contrary, small-sized companies require a
small number of Master/Diagnostic Technicians and no Senior Technician as shown in Figure 4-55.
The reason is because small-sized companies have a larger number of total workforce (5-29
personnel) and the ratio of job positions in the Technician category is already sufficient. Hence, to
increase the number of branches, the small-sized companies only require new Technicians rather
than new Master/Diagnostic Technicians and Senior Technicians as the workforce from these
positions can be obtained by promoting available Technicians in the current branches or transferring
available Master/Diagnostic Technicians and Senior Technicians to the new branches.

Figure 4-54: Required workforce for Technician category by year 2025 (Micro-sized companies)

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Figure 4-55: Required workforce for Technician category by year 2025 (Small-sized companies)

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4.6 MSIC E383 and MSIC C293 Sections

4.6.1 Dismantling of Automobiles and Other
Equipment for Material Recovery (MSIC

E383)

End-of-Life Vehicle (ELV) is the ending stage of aftermarket automotive industry. Nevertheless, it
will be the beginning of a new life cycle in a cradle-to-cradle approach (closed-loop) for the used
automotive parts and components. This approach is aligned with European directives which require
automobile manufacturers to produce a vehicle that contains reusable and/or recoverable parts of at
least 95% of its total weight (Directive, 2000). Possibly, this 95% of vehicle parts and components
are reusable and recyclable. Automotive recyclers in Malaysia are exporting half-cut and second-
hand vehicles from European countries and Japan for the parts and components to be used as
goods.

MARii recorded 10.3 million vehicles owned by Malaysians and five million out of the total
number are more than ten years. It is assumed that the majority of this category of vehicles are
owned by those that would prefer used parts and components for their vehicle’s maintenance. There
is no reason to put on a new OEM spare-part to run a vehicle aged more than eight years old or
even for those lower than that (Mohamed, 2020).The urgency of the ELV management system in
Malaysia is supported by a research (Mamat, 2017) which proposed ten strategic factors on ELV
management, including management responsibility, performance management, capacity
management, resources management, education and awareness, cost management, stakeholders’
responsibility, and authority enforcement.

The growth of recyclers and remanufacturers is not limited to a certain OEM products or
brands carried by independent remanufacturers because of demand. The recyclers, parts dealers,
or even workshop foremen are often confused between reusing, reconditioning, refurbishing, or
remanufacturing parts and components. Even the consumers do not acknowledge these criteria. In
common practices, automotive recyclers sell parts and components from half-cut or second-hand
vehicles as used parts or components to market after the three steps of diagnosing, dismantling, and
cleaning processes. However, in remanufacturing, the seven steps of diagnosing, dismantling,
cleaning, inspection, remanufacturing (remediation), reassembly, and tested to a standard must be
fulfilled before entering the consumer market again.

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4.6.2 Manufacture of Parts and Accessories for
Motor Vehicles (MSIC C293)

Remanufacturing is a value-added process that transforms end-of-life products into products that
are as good as new. Even though a product is being remanufactured with a good working condition,
the standard quality is hard to define. Mohamed (2020) conducted surveys to confirm the definition
of remanufacturing, as resulted in Table 4-2. For that, it is affirmative that remanufactured products
need to be functioned and warrantied like new but sold at lower price. In theory, researchers
suggested that remanufactured products must go into seven stages of processes on returning the
reliability and working condition close to brand-new OEM products to prolong their life-span (Butzer
S. et al., 2017; Errington, 2009; Khalifa, 2013; Mohamed, 2020). Performing the seven steps needs
massive knowledge and experiences in developing good technical skills. Master Technician level is
very important in this area.

Table 4-2: Survey Results on Remanufacturing Definition

Remanufacturing Terminology Yes No
Need Warranty same as Original Equipment 55 7
Manufacturer (OEM) Products?
Function and Perform as new OEM Products? 59 3
Price reduced more than 40% from OEM Products? 33 28

Affirmatively, quality assurance and warranty offered on remanufacturing end goods will
make remanufacturing not only successful for the ultimate greening business, but also a profitable
business in this new era. New industries will be created which will offer jobs and businesses. In the
research, 48% of the respondents came from the automotive sector mixed with academic
researchers and industrial practitioners via offline and online, as show in Figure 4-56 (Mohamed,
2020). It shows that the number of automotive remanufacturers in Malaysia is relatively small and
very limited. Matters like email bounce because of company restriction, email going to the ‘outbox’
or ‘junk’ folders, and the survey links being restricted were the noticeable issues in this research.
Hence, statistical data were hard to reach.

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Industry Respondent

13% 15%

13%
48% 21%

1%

64%

25% Heavy Machinery Industrial Practitioner
Automotive Electric & Electronic Academic Researcher
Printing Others
Others

Figure 4-56: Background of the respondents and the sectors served (%)

As presented earlier, the remanufacturing industry in Malaysia is propagated into seven
sectors and the result from the survey showed the 62 respondents were tabulated by experience,
where 48% were in automotive, 25% in heavy machinery, 1% in printing, 13% in electric/electronic
and 13% in the ‘others’ category. Other categories were represented by marine and shipyard,
maritime automation services, and precision engineering which are related with mechanical
components and parts. Hence, these will strengthen the survey outcomes in terms of opinions that
were biased to mechanical automation components and parts.

Azmi (2012) proposed a solution for Malaysian ELV recycling problems and an overview that
integrated the needs of remanufacturing activities into the ELV management system as the areas of
MSIC C293 and MSIC E383 were hard to distinguish and stranded in a very grey area. To the latest
finding, Mohamed (2020) concluded that Management Expert, Skills Worker, and High-End
Technology are among the biggest important factors in automotive remanufacturing industry. The
establishment of the ELV system is important to be constructed at the start in order to merge the
ELV industry with proper recycle and ensure a premium remanufacturing business.

According to Macias et al. (2013), in importing countries, the vehicle pricing structure is likely
to create a relatively low cost of second-hand vehicle use to strengthen the incentives to demand
second-hand vehicles from other countries. This vehicle price structure is defined by the low or non-
existent safety, environmental, and fuel regulations. This scenario also goes to the second-hand
imported vehicle components in Malaysia. However, the president of the Federation of Engineering
and Motor Parts Trader’s Association Malaysia (FEMPTAM) stated that most used components are

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imported from Japan and Europe, with limited components sourced from the local market. As stated
in APEC (2015), the findings from this study also agreed with the scenario where most Malaysian
cars are from Japan and Europe. In the report, APEC only listed eight companies which are involved
with the remanufacturing industry as the remanufacturers or suppliers in Malaysia, with eight types
of common components: the alternator, a/c compressor, distributer, engine, fuel pump, gear box,
starter, and turbo as listed in Table 4-3. This proves the limited reliable data for MSIC C293.

Table 4-3: Malaysia Remanufacturing Company APEC (2015)

COMPANYCOMPANY
Motor Teknologi dan Industri
PART SB
S Motorcar Parts of America
Alternator Everspark Industries SB
Wah Seng Industry SB
A/ C Compressor Volvo (M) SB
Precision Automotive Industry
Distributor Soon Lian Trading SB
EH Auto Link Asia SB
Engine
xxxx xx
Fuel Pump
x
Gear Box
xx
Starter
xx
Turbo
x

xx

xxx xx

xx

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Table 4-4: Proposed Remanufacturing Strategy for Malaysia (MAARA, 2016)

Internal Proposed Remanufacturing Strategy for External
Malaysia Challenges
Challenges Enablers Enablers
Favourable Insufficient core
Lack technical Sustainable economic supply
incentives
capabilities Manufacturing Well informed Poor market
market acceptance
Lack skilled Skill workers
workforce

Research, Policy factors
Development,
Innovation

A strategy for the remanufacturing automotive sector in Malaysia is proposed with two success keys
of internal enablers and external enablers, and the challenges compounded with the strategy are as
depicted in MAARA (2016).

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4.6.3 Challenges of Remanufacturing Industry

The challenges of automotive remanufacturing industry with automakers are clearly tough to handle.
There are several main challenges that keep repeating and are recorded in literature on the ELV
industry. In this research, seven were found; i) supply chain and logistic issue, ii) core management,
iii) customer acceptance, iv) remanufacturing processes, v) quality assurance, vi) experts and skilled
workers, and vii) economy (Mohamed, 2020). Points of number ii, iv, and vi in Mohamed (2020)
showed that up-skilling technical experts is very important in remanufacturing.

The shortage of remanufacturing experts in Malaysia is very critical and was the biggest
challenge to this research. In addition, automotive remanufacturers in Malaysia are not recognised
because of the non-existent standards and regulations of this industry in Malaysia. In conducting this
research, the author encountered a few challenges, limitations, and restrictions.

i. Limited Experts: Clark (2015) only listed eight companies that may be embedded with
automotive remanufacturing whereas Malaysia Automotive Recyclers Association (MAARA)
listed more than 100 auto parts suppliers registered under the organisation. However, they
were confirmed as not proficient or qualified to the level of a remanufacturer.

ii. Limited Qualified Industrial Practitioners: To define appropriate population and sample size
was a long task. After doing some field studies and processes of focus group discussions, the
terms remanufacturer and recycler were defined. Hence, statistical studies were found
unsuitable for these areas.

iii. Limited academic literature: The process of gathering the materials and literature for data
collection was challenging due to limited journal/papers on remanufacturing itself. Literature
looks into a bigger scope in relation to remanufacturing, which are ELV, recycling, and reuse.

iv. Conflicts between industrial practitioners, government agencies, and researchers: a different
set of experts might have provided a different perception on the importance of factors and
items in the study depending on their business prominence.

v. Restrictions: Confidentiality of business information was an issue. Companies engaged in
recycling businesses and those which engaged with them might pose vulnerabilities of the
current practices (especially for recyclers). Some so-called remanufacturers are trying to
confine their level of business achievements to themselves. These were concluded as ‘hard-
to-reach’ targets for data collections.

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4.7 Other Service Activities (MSIC S960)

MSIC S960 is referred to other service activities that do not fall into any industrial codes under the
2008 Malaysia Standard Industrial Classification. As for the automotive aftermarket sub-sector,
vehicle inspection industry activities fall under MSIC S960. The main industry player for vehicle
inspection activities is PUSPAKOM, a subsidiary of DRB-HICOM that focuses on commercial vehicle
and used car inspections. PUSPAKOM as the main inspection centre in Malaysia has a concession
agreement with the Ministry of Transport (MOT) to conduct mandatory inspections on commercial
and private vehicles until 2024 (Murugiah, 2018). Currently, PUSPAKOM have 54 permanent
branches (PUSPAKOM, 2020) and more than 25 mobile inspection units under 2 mobile branches
all over Malaysia.

Based on the survey with PUSPAKOM, it is estimated that there are 972 current workforces
involved in this MSIC section. Since the main business of this sector is vehicle inspections, majority
of the workforce is Vehicle Examiners, with 78% of the total number shown in Figure 4-57. Following
this are Operation Supervisors, 9% and Maintenance Technicians, 7%. The Maintenance Technician
here is the general technician, such as IT technician, office electrician, or mechanical technician.
They are not necessarily involved with vehicle inspections or maintenance activities. Meanwhile, the
manager marked 6% of the total workforce as there is only one manager per branch.

Figure 4-57: Distribution of job positions for Vehicle Inspection category

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According to PUSPAKOM, Vehicle Examiners must meet the minimum eligibility requirement
for at least Diploma or SKM Level 3 certificate. Meanwhile, for other positions, only Diploma or higher
degree is preferred. This is the reason why most of the workforces in this industry have diploma
certificate while only around 22% of the workforces have SKM Level 3which are among Vehicle
Examiners. As shown in Figure 4-58, 2/3 of the vehicle examiners are diploma holders. Moreover,
since there are no SKM graduates related to the vehicle inspections produced for the past three
years, the 22% of the vehicle examiners are obtained from MSIC G452 SKM graduates.
The salary received by the workforce in this industry is not based on the SKM or Non-SKM
background. From the survey results, the branch manager can receive a salary up to RM 7,500 per
month while the supervisor is RM 5,500 per month. Vehicle Examiner and Maintenance Technician
positions will obtain almost the same salary, with the minimum amount is ranging from RM 1,300 to
RM 1,400 per month and the maximum wage is around RM 3,400 per month; while for the Senior
Vehicle Examiners position, they can receive up to RM 3,700 per month. Based on the feedback
from companies, the average attrition rate of the companies in this section is around 11%. The
workforce demand for this section is small but the turnover rate is quite high. As shown in Figure
4-60, the vehicle examiner position is highly in demand and the additional of 660 workforces are
required in the next five years.

Figure 4-58: Education Background for Vehicle Inspection Category

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Figure 4-59: Salary for Vehicle Inspection Personnel by Job Positions
Figure 4-60: Required Workforce for Vehicle Inspection Workforce by Year 2025

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4.8 Benchmarking Programme

4.8.1 Germany

In Germany, the education system related to Vocational Education and Training (VET) programmes
at secondary and tertiary levels consist of OJT and work-based learning as the major components.
In addition to the traditional teaching approach, the Germany government introduced the dual VET
system, consisting of academics and VET components in industry with the portion of 30 and 70,
respectively. In dual VET model, the pathway is structured with the smooth transition from school to
working life, together with the inclusion of theoretical knowledge and practical training at real industry
concurrently. Nowadays, the dual VET graduates are becoming more popular among the industries.
In this dual system, companies will provide their work-based training part. Several initiatives have
been introduced by the government to support the companies who participating in this programme
including SMEs. These companies offer the training place to the apprentices. The dual VET
graduates have attracted a high number of students with a university entrance diploma and profit
from a high employment rate.

Figure 4-61: VET Education and Training System in Germany (GOVET, 2020)

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To ensure the young people are employable, learning in practice approached is implemented.
Instead of simulating the working environment (simulated learning), the student involved is actually
working with the industries. In many cases, the student can meet the industrial standard during the
second to third year of their study duration. Due to the company acceptance, VET became the most
popular education pathway. Roughly 70% of all beginners undergo vocational training while another
30% choose to enter the university. Out of 70% going for vocational training, 70% are through the
Dual-VET, and another 30% choose to go through the school vocational programme.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian SLDN is similar with the Germany Dual-VET programme, where
they combine their practical workplace training at the industry with theoretical training in the training
institutions accredited by the MOHR. Moreover, both NDTS and Germany Dual-VET systems share
almost similar percentage of practical and theoretical learning.

In relation to the Automotive Aftermarket System, two specialised profession are highlighted,
namely:
i. Auto mechatronic and

ii. Automobile salesperson.

Under the VET, more than 60,000 and more than 10,000 are required to be produced every
year for Auto Mechatronic and Automobile Salesperson, respectively. This shows the demand of the
job positions in the development of Automotive Aftermarket Industry in Germany. Aligned with the
automotive technology development in Germany, understanding on mechatronic also becoming
more crucial.

Different than some of our industrial perspective that believed good interpersonal skills as
well as talent to convince the customer is the main criteria, VET programmes in Germany provides
special programme to equip student with special knowledge in sales activities. In the practice,
salesperson is also required to spend few weeks in the workshop as a helper to maintain the car so
that they will know the vehicle and the process and maintenance thoroughly. In Germany, the sales
of car often happen in company with the workshop attached that said as promising in giving
advantage to implement the as-mentioned approach. The skill should not specialise too much in
vocational but there is a demand formulated by the industry, which required more specialised person
who is capable to explain the complicity. Cars this day has become the product that requires
explanation, as the technical features have become more complex. The customer is more educated,
and they require answers with proper technical knowledge. More than 10,000 units are required
every year, and this shows the demand for the post of automobile salesperson.

As per our findings on MSIC G452, additional training on management is practically important
for micro-sized company as most of the employees are involved with the management activities. To

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develop the company, most of the employer would train their own staff to meet the industrial
standard. In Germany regulation, to set up the automotive company or to train the employee, it is
compulsory to hold at least the master craftsman qualification or engineer due to the safety reason.
To be a master craftsman, the candidate should undergo a dual-VET training programme with 1-
year full time industrial training. The graduates of dual-VET yet unable to be the trainers or open the
company unless they undergo additional 1-year full time training to obtain the Master Craftsman/
Service Technician qualification, comprising of training related to the additional technical skills,
technical theory, business management and law.

Stakeholders in VET are included in the vocational training including chambers (Chamber of
Commerce and Chamber of Skill Craft) and business organisation. The chambers will monitor the
training and accredited the company that involve in training. To be approved by the government, a
company must be adequately equipped with up to date facilities, has the right and enough training
personnel, and at least-one employee has completed the train of trainers’ programme. The trainer
however can be the experienced skill workers. Besides, the programme will be monitored by the
auditor from the chambers in order to ensure the training company has reasonable trainers to
apprentice’s ratio as well as reasonable up to date facilities. Due to the rapid changes in Germany
technology, the competency has been described in a technology-independent way. The VET has a
standard that describes the competency required at every year. However, it is not described as detail
as the curriculum. Table 4-5 shows the competence model for the assessment of skills in the
occupational field of motor vehicle technology.

Table 4-5: Competence Model for Skills Assessment in Occupational Field of Motor Vehicle
Technology (Becker, 2009)

DIFFICULTY 1 2 3 4
LEVEL
Servicing Servicing Servicing,
FIELDS OF Repair of with service report,
ACTIVITY wear and tear
additional handovers
Service Standard service, works
care and Unit overhaul
Rectification of
maintenance damage

Repair Replacements

Diagnosis Routine Integrated Rule-based Experience-
diagnosis diagnosis diagnosis based diagnosis

Refitting and Additional System
Retrofitting installation, add- expansion and

on parts integration

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In Germany, the equipment, cloths, materials, and training allowance which given by the
company to the trainee are tax deducted. Germany government is supportive to the dual-VET
systems, since it funds a lot of activities that support this training as well as providing fund for
government training centre and supporting system. However, the government never provide direct
incentive to the company.

4.8.2 Indonesia

In Indonesia, vocational education and vocational training are regulated separately under the
Ministry of Education and Culture (MENC) for secondary education and the Directorate General of
Higher Education (DGHE) for the Tertiary education. TVET can be obtained through the following
systems, namely Formal vocational education. Vocational training, and Combination of both
vocational education and vocational training

Education in Indonesia can be divided into several levels, which are Primary, Secondary, and
Tertiary, and these levels can be further segregated into the academic and the vocational tracks as
shown in Figure 4-62. The vocational track is started in the secondary level called Vocational Senior
Secondary Schools (SMK), which covers not only technical skills but also other general academic.
In Tertiary education, vocational programmes are offered by several institutions including
polytechnics, academies, community academies, advanced schools, institutes, and universities. The
Diploma 4 (D4) programmes of tertiary vocational institutions, is equivalent to a bachelor’s degree
program, whereas academic programmes are offered only in the advanced schools, institutes, and
universities.

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Figure 4-62: TVET Education Pathway in Indonesia (Kadir et al., 2016)

MENC is targeted to spur better ratio of SMK to Upper Secondary School (SMA) graduates,
and it is estimated that about 30% and 20% of Indonesia’s labour force will be coming from SMKs
and SMAs graduates respectively by year 2025. Industries Linkage is an initiative that closes the
gap between the industries and vocational education institutions, by ensuring that the relevant skills
are obtained by the graduates. Several initiatives are developed in order to enhance the institution-
industry linkage, which can be found as follows:

1. Secondment of industry experts to vocational education institutions as part-time instructors.
2. Assign external assessors among the industry expert for the competency tests for vocational

students.
3. Encourage participation in the annual job fairs.
4. Establishment of Teaching Factory in Secondary and Tertiary education. Summary of the

Teaching Factory model is described in Table 4-6.
5. Student work experience programme such as collaborate with industries to provide three to

six months student internship placement and apprenticeship.

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Lifelong learning is also encouraged to the technician personnel so that they can keep
updated their knowledge and skill with the latest technology. Short courses related to the specific
systems update are normally offered by OEM and company’s training institutions, such as Federal
Mogul, NAPA, and AC Delco.

Table 4-6: Teaching Factory Models in Indonesia’s Vocational Education System (Ruslin, 2017)

Model 1 Model 2 Model 3

The Schools or Institution The SMK or tertiary The teaching factory takes

provides space for its vocational institution builds a the form of special

industry partner to build a teaching factory jointly with cooperation classes

teaching factory within the its industry partner, with the between an industry partner

institution’s premises. The teaching factory located and an SMK or tertiary

teaching factory is thus a either within or outside the vocational institution. As

mini replica of an actual school’s premises. The such, students would

factory, where vocational teaching factory operates as practice their skills in two

students learn to assemble a separate business unit places — in laboratories

and produce goods for the from the SMK or tertiary owned by the SMK or tertiary

industrial partner, with the vocational institutions, and vocational institution, and in

SMK or tertiary vocational the management of the the actual factories owned by

institution in charge in the teaching factory is different the industry partner. The

management of the teaching from that of the SMK or operational costs for this

factory. tertiary vocational institution. special cooperation class

This model of teaching can be fully or partially paid

factory is heavily shaped by from the industry partner’s

the needs of the vocational Corporate Social

programme. Responsibility (CSR) funds.

Automotive Aftermarket Student Work Experiences Programme in Indonesia can be
summarised as Table 4-7 (Setiadi & Timotius, 2015).

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Table 4-7: Indonesia Automotive Aftermarket Student Work Experiences Programme

Programme Descriptions

Job shadowing Job shadowing is a programme that exposes student to the real world by

programme spending time with the experience workers in their workplace. Through

observation and experiences obtained from simple activity done during the

programme, student will able to familiarise themselves with the real working

environment and relate their learning with actual operational activities.

Mentoring In this programme, student will be given a mentor which is the industrial expert

programme who agreed to stay in contact and support the student throughout his/her study.

The mentor will be a reference for the student whenever they are facing

difficulty on understanding any technical knowledge learn in the class. This

would enable student to relate their understanding with a real-life example.

Cooperative In Indonesia, the programme includes the cooperation of industries such as

Education Chrysler CAPS, Ford ASSET, and Toyota T-Ten with the local education

provider. Generally, student will spend 50% of their time in the industries

(dealership or service facility), and another 50% at the institution (this can be

done intermittently in every week). Through the programme, the student will be

able to apply the knowledge and practical skill gained in the institution while

being in the real industry. They will have the salary based on their working

hours, which also considered as their education credit hours towards their

degree or diploma. The programme is structured so that the industrial

experience will be matched and coordinated with the learning experienced

obtained in the institution.

Apprenticeship Apprenticeship programme is often sponsor by dealers and Automobile

Programme manufacturers. This programme (normally 2 years programme) is closely

similar with cooperative education programme except for the apprenticeship

programme part, and the academic classes is conducted in the evening after

completing their daily work task. Students are normally regard as helper.

Postgraduate A few manufacturer programmes are designed for graduates of postsecondary

Education schools. These programmes train individuals to work on particular vehicles. For

an example, BMW’s Service Technician Education Program (STEP) is a

scholarship programme for the top graduates of automotive postsecondary

schools. Students in the programme would apply what they learned in their 2-

year programme and learn to diagnose and service BMW products. According

to BMW, this programme is the most respected and intense training

programme of its kind in the world.

105

The apprenticeship programmes in Indonesia vocational education is adopted from the
Germany model of dual-VET training programme. The time for the apprenticeship programme is
flexible as student can be at the industry at any time during their programme with the total duration
of the attachment is between 6 months to 1 year. It can be in the first, second or third year of their
registration period at the SMK. The apprenticeship programme is based on the concept of “link and
match” to make the programmes relevant by aligning them with the industry demands. The best
example of apprenticeship programme through a dual training system in Indonesia is the
collaboration between the SMK and the industry, where students are compulsory to attend industrial
work practice programme called as Praktek Kerja Industri (Prakerin).

The local government provides subsidy for the work experiences and apprenticeship
programme depending on the budget availability. In order to be sustainable, SMKs and tertiary
vocational institutions require capacity building in the areas of monitoring and evaluation of the
schools’ progress and development, budget allocation, teaching practices, curriculum development,
improving learning outcomes as well as resource mobilisation. Due to resource limitations, the
MENC and the DGHE often enlist the help of private companies and non-governmental organisations
in order to conduct these capacity building programmes. Lack of incentives has made the companies
to fund activities related to the education sector from their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
funds. However, for the SME companies, the obligation to provide CSR funds on top of paying
business taxes proves burdensome (Kadir et al., 2016).

In terms of capacity building for vocational teachers and lecturers, presently, there is a
shortage of tertiary vocational institution lecturers with vocational master and PhD degrees due to
the growing number of new polytechnics. To cover the gaps, the 2015 DGHE has offer full
scholarships to young degree holder polytechnic lecturers to pursue vocational master’s degrees in
Taiwan, Germany, or Austria. The recipients will need to follow 5 years employment contract with
their previous polytechnic.

4.8.3 Thailand

Skills development in Thailand is provided through both formal and non-formal TVET. The trainings
are mainly organised by the Ministry of Education through Office for Vocational Education
Commission (OVEC) and Office of Private Education Commission (OPEC), and Department of Non-
Formal Education (DNFE), Ministry of Labour (MOL) through Department of Skills Development
(DSD), Ministry of Industry through the Department of Industrial Promotion, and Ministry of
Agriculture.

106
Similar with Indonesia and Malaysia, the formal TVET pathway in Thailand education begins
at the secondary level. There are several special vocational programmes targeted for specific group
started in lower secondary education level, but formal vocational education started in upper
secondary education level provided in vocational colleges and institutes and last three years
(UNESCO-UNEVOC, 2015). In Tertiary education, TVET programmes are offered by several
institutions including polytechnics, academies, community academies, advanced schools, institutes,
and universities. TVET programmes at the tertiary education level that offered in tertiary level
colleges and universities are normally provided in two cycles where each have two years duration.
In addition, students who have completed a two-year post-secondary TVET programme are able to
switch to the undergraduate programme and attend the last year to be awarded with an
undergraduate qualification (UNESCO-UNEVOC, 2015).

Figure 4-63: Thailand Education System
One of the key factors that give a competitive edge to Thailand’s automotive industry is its
supportive government policies. Thailand government issued the Skill Development Promotion Act
2002 as the incentive and compulsory measure to stimulate and promote the workplace training.
This act encourages business operators or employers to play their vital role in upgrading the skills
and knowledge of the workforce by granting tax deduction of up to 200 percent of the training cost
that occurred at the workplace. This stimulates private sectors and establishments to set up and
register with the DSD as training providers for workplace learning. Some incentives given from this
act are the assistance from DSD in providing the consultation, Train of Trainers programmes,
curriculum, and equipment development. In addition, there are exemption on import duty and value

107

added tax (VAT) for tools and machinery imported for the training purpose as well as deduction on
utility charges for electricity and pipe water bills in the amount of two times of the training expenses.
In addition, workplace training is compulsory for companies with more than 100 workers, where 50%
of the total workers must be trained in the workplace. Otherwise, such companies have to pay annual
contribution to the Skill Development Fund approximately 480 baht per head for the number of
untrained workers (Puntrik, 2011). The act has successfully increased the significant number of
workers involved in skills development to 400% in 2008 since 2006 (Puntrik, 2011). However, since
1993, it was reported that TVET students in Thailand is decreasing gradually compared to students
who followed the Non-TVET path, even though the Thailand government have targeted 50% of
overall students in TVET education path. The reason is contributed to the higher chances of students
to enrol in universities as well as increases the negative perception of TVET in Thailand.

Meanwhile, Thailand continues to be the dominant automotive aftermarket hub within South
East Asia, with the best automotive supply and logistics chain as well as impressive production
figures for domestic and export markets. As with other markets, Thailand is moving towards eco cars
and SUVs, but the country's industry is still dominated by one-ton pick-up trucks (Marklines, 2020).
Bangkok is the key driver of the independent aftermarket, while the North and the Northeast will be
the key markets contributing to aftermarket growth over the coming years. The uncertified
independent workshop is still becoming the channel with the most outlets. However, branded service
providers and certified independent workshops are well positioned to benefit from the development
of increased demand from out-of-warranty car owners. Many OEMs and automotive component
manufacturers are seeking to develop stronger revenue streams, and this is bringing the aftermarket
sector into greater focus. This market offers significant potential to the industry as a strong revenue
stream (Chang et al., 2016; Ipsos Business Consulting, 2016a; Medina, 2019). The description and
example of general parts distributor and part retails shops are shown and explained in Table 4-8.

However, the Thailand’s automotive aftermarket sector suffered with the shortage of TVET
graduates because most of them continue to study at a higher level of education, in addition to the
declining interest of TVET education. It is estimated that in year 2025, 21,107 TVET workforces are
needed in the sector and 58.4% of the workforces are required to have the advanced TVET certificate
(Ministry of Labour, 2014). In 2018, the advancement rates of graduates with vocational certificates
and higher vocational certificates are found to be 85% and 30%, respectively (Agency & Llc, 2018).
The skill mismatch also become an issue to the Thailand’s automotive industry, hence leads the
higher levels of education demanded by the industry to compensate for the inadequate skills of TVET
graduates.

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Table 4-8: Overview of Distribution Players in Thailand (Ipsos Business Consulting, 2016b)

Four strategies were implemented by the Thailand government to improve the TVET
education quality and status, namely Pilot Model Schools establishment, Work Integrated Learning,
Competency-Based Standards Setting, and Collaboration with International Agencies (Agency & Llc,
2018):
i. Pilot Model Schools:

Some schools and educational institutions were appointed as the role model to be followed.
The main method of training is determined through project-based approach and the training
is strongly supported by the companies. Even though the cost of subsidies given by the
Thailand government to the Pilot Model Schools is high, the dropout rate from these
institutions is almost zero compare to the 30% normal dropout rate of TVET colleges.
ii. Work Integrated Learning:
Several collaborations with private sector such as dual education, internships and work-
integrated learning are being implemented. In 2017, 30% of TVET students were studying in
the dual education system, involving more than 18,000 companies. The private sector
involved in the dual education system receive a 200% income tax deduction. Overall, 26
public-private partnership committees have been set up to close the gap between demand
and supply, but there is no centralised third-party agency (such as Chamber of Commerce in

109

Germany) that helps to coordinate, monitor and assure the work training quality at the private
sector. Science Technology and Innovation Policy Office (STI) has launched the “School in
Factory” programme, by targeting students at higher vocational diploma level and
underprivileged student. Students spend more than 90% of their time working in factory
during daytime and site-lecturers who are either university lecturers or master students who
teach theory that applied at work in the evening. Due to the flexibility of the training, number
of participating companies are increasing steadily over the years, and retention rate of the
students are high after being compared to the 20-30% drop-out rate in the normal TVET
education.

iii. Competency-Based Standard Setting:

Thailand has developed the Thai Qualifications Framework for Vocational Education (TQF:
VEd), and the National Qualifications Framework (NQF), in order to prepare the Thai
workforces to meet national and international standards of knowledge, skills and
competencies and to promote the system of quality assurance. As Thailand’s DSD has its
own standards for certain occupations, OVEC is also revising curriculums in order to meet
the occupational standards outlined by the DSD, hence graduates of technical schools and
colleges would be automatically granted such standard certification. Thailand is also
preparing an ASEAN Qualifications Reference Framework (AQRF) as a regional common
reference framework to enable comparisons of qualifications across ASEAN countries and
promote life-long learning in the region.

iv. International Collaboration:

International collaboration in TVET includes activities such as student exchange, a study
abroad programme, teacher training, and technical assistance. Besides dual education
model adopted from Germany, Thailand also considered the US model of “Career Academy”
and Japan model of “KOSEN” as the systems to improve the TVET education. There is a
student exchange programme between Pilot Model Schools and KOSEN in Japan since 2016
and it will be expanded into the establishment of Thailand-Japan Technical College that
follows KOSEN standards (Saengpassa, 2014). Some foreign companies including Chevron,
US support the TVET education in Thailand through a public-private partnership model under
“the Enjoy Science Project”. 6 TVET hubs and 60 technical colleges participate in the project
and benefitting over 100,000 TVET students, as well as teachers, principals, government
officials and workers (Kenan Foundation Asia, 2020).

110

In addition to these strategies, the companies that operate in the automotive aftermarket
sectors are eligible for various incentives and benefits on the condition that they cooperate with high
educational institutions and TVET institutions, by utilising the talent mobility programme or Work
Integrated Learning such as in the dual education system. The Thailand government has introduced
tax incentive policies to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) that helps Thailand to enhance its
national competitiveness. These primarily include the provision of incentives for the introduction of
higher technologies, human resources development, research and development (R&D) activities,
design activities and commercialisation of the results of local R&D (Thailand Board of Investment
North America, 2018).

Unlike Malaysia, which created national champion firms in the automotive industry, Thailand
does not have its national brand producer. Most recently, however, Thailand automotive policy has
focused on selecting a national product champion (picking a winning model of vehicle), and by setting
lower excise tax rates for it, the government helps to create a particular market demand based on
consumers’ preferences (Pacific, 2011). At the same time, the government provides tax exemptions,
such as corporate tax, for attracting foreign investors into national product champion production. In
addition, auto manufacturers and investors in Thailand can benefit immensely from the country’s free
trade agreements (FTAs). As the Thailand’s automotive manufacturing and aftermarket sector are
driven by foreign direct investment (FDI), the companies aspire to employ technical college and
university graduates with good command of English as they would need to communicate with clients
and suppliers in that particular language.

4.8.4 Governance Best Practice

Most of the countries that having TVET programmes and involve with the industry participations are
adopting the Germany dual education system. Based on our benchmark, the comparison of dual
education system related to TVET education in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Germany can be
summarised in Table 4-9.

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Table 4-9: Comparison of TVET Dual Training System in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Germany

Definition Malaysia SLDN Thailand Indonesia Germany Dual-
Prakerin VET
industry-oriented industry-oriented Part of vocational
training training upper secondary industry-oriented
programme that programme that school curriculum training
combines combines that requires programme that
workplace and workplace and workplace combines
institutional institutional training at an workplace and
training training industry institutional
training

Responsible JPK and industry Public Private Ministry of
Agency lead bodies Collaborative Commerce
oversees the Committees
implementation

Practical- 70 – 80% Normal: Up to 40 % 70 %
Theory Ratio competency 70 % competency competency
training in competency training in training in
industry, 20 – training in industry, 60 % industry, 30%
30% theoretical industry, 30% theoretical theoretical
training at theoretical training at training at
accredited training at vocational school training institution
training centre training institution

Teaching
Factory:
90% practical
during day and
10% site lecture
afterward

Total Duration Up to 2 years Up to 4 years 3 years 2 – 3.5 years

Training Regular basis Regular basis Block System Regular basis
Method (four or five days (three days in (several months (four or five days
in companies and companies and to one year at the in companies and
one or two days two days in companies and one or two days
in training training institution the rest in in training
institution a a week) or vocational institution a
week) or school) week) or
Block System
Block System (several months Block System
(several months at companies (several months
at companies and several at companies
and several weeks at training and several
weeks at training institution per weeks at training
institution per year) institution per
year) year)

Target Upper Secondary Secondary and Vocational upper Lower Secondary
School leavers or post-secondary secondary school

112

Apprentices Malaysia SLDN Thailand Indonesia Germany Dual-
TVET students Prakerin VET
Financial existing workers (SMK) students
Support chosen by the School leavers
employers

Apprentices Apprentices Apprentices may Apprentices
receive received loans receive receive
allowances from from Skill allowance, allowances from
the companies Development depends on the companies.
and federal Funds budget No direct
government. administered by availability of incentives from
Companies gain a Skill local government government. The
tax deduction Development or the companies participation of
and HRDF Promotion CSR funds. industry in
reimbursement Committee and training have
have to repay the been deeply
loan within 12 rooted in the
months after Germany
completion of education
training culture.

To determine the governance best practice to be applied in Malaysia, several factors need
to be taken into consideration including the nature of the industry, the country economic situation,
and society perception towards TVET education. The governance practice was analysed based on
the strategy used by the government to strengthen the relationship between the education institution
and the industry through several beneficial acts and policies. Figure 4-64 shows several models that
could be taken into consideration in promoting the government to private industry relation.

Thailand is a good example in enforcing the Skills Development Promotion Act. The act was
proved attractive by the international companies to invest in Thailand human capital development.
The act was also brought into the technology transfer activities between countries and international
private industries. Import duty exemption for training equipment imported into the country has
become to the key attraction under the act. Apart from that, company that provides human capital
development could enjoy deduction in utilities charges. This then provides certain extension in
advancement of training programmes and equipment, by ensuring the workforce as having the
suitable skillset standard to fulfil the Thailand automotive industry requirement. Together with the
advanced training programme, Thailand is looking forward to align their TVET qualification with
international standard through the AQRF. The Malaysia Pembangunan Sumber Manusia Berhad Act
2001, which is currently attractive to the local private training provider, could be further enhanced by
a special stimulus package that replicates some interesting features of the Thailand Skills
Development Promotion Act.

113

The government should take advantage of using HRDF fund to catalyst the development of
new model of TVET education since it is believed to be beneficial to both demand and supply. For
example, there are unique collaboration models between secondary level education and industry.
Mentoring programme implemented in Indonesia secondary education for example would provide
clear understanding of the real industrial situation as early as in secondary level education. Students
also have the opportunities to join the mirroring programme that enable them to come to the industry
and do a simple job under the monitoring of their mentor. In Malaysia, this could be an additional
element to be embedded into our PIMA programme. Instead of preparing the secondary level student
for the real working environment, Thailand interprets their secondary level education as the
preparation stage for student to receive the practical training in the tertiary education. Both situations
are acceptable in Malaysia as the aftermarket industry can be divided into several complexity levels
of operation. Indonesia approach could be suitable for industry related to sales operation of MSIC
G451 and G453. Some conditions especially the micro-sized company of MSIC G454 may fit in
implementing the same method.

In the tertiary education, the relation of institution and industry are almost similar, as they are
adopting the Germany dual education system approach. The main differences are highlighted
through its programme implementation, syllabus, and equipment used for the training activities. In
term of the effectiveness, it is also depending on the level of engagement strength with the industries.
In Thailand, the establishment of many Public-Private Collaborative Committees has strengthened
the engagement of government and industry including the collaboration in dual education system.
Since Malaysia also have the Public-Private Collaborative Committee, this platform can be used in
order to increase the involvement of industries with the SLDN programme.

Safety and good management are given the higher priority in the Germany automotive
aftermarket industry development which supported by the Craft Protection Act 1897. This act is a
historical governance initiative which catalyst the revolutionised excellency of TVET education in
Germany since the last two centuries. From this act, to setup an automotive company in Germany,
it is compulsory to have a special qualification that ensure the safety, management, and competency
at the right operation standard. The idea of promoting safety and good management would be a
good practice to be applied in Malaysia especially in the micro companies, where they are usually
established by the experienced technical personnel, but could be lacking in management knowledge
(Wolf, 2017).

Figure 4-64: Summary of different TVET education approaches and policies 114

115

4.9 Programme Evaluation

This study has evaluated the workforce performance satisfaction based on the feedback given by
the aftermarket industry players. Detailed feedbacks for every MSIC section are given in Figure 4-65
to Figure 4-69. Employers of MSIC G451 section are mostly satisfied with the workforce from SPM
and SKM Level 1-3 background followed by the degree and diploma holder workforce. However,
majority of the employers in this MSIC section gave feedback that they preferred experienced with
good interpersonal skills persons for the sales job positions regardless of the education background.
This contradiction can be explained by the high number of workforces coming from the SPM level
only (refer Section 4.2.1). As the current workforce in this section are mainly from SPM, hence high
percentage of SPM holder workforce are in the satisfying category. In addition, despite of the lower
number of diploma and degree holder workforce in MSIC G451 section, their work performance is
recognised by the employers.

Similar feedbacks are obtained in MSIC G453 section where most of the workforce have
satisfying work performance regardless of their education background. MSIC G453 section only
focuses on sales of parts and accessories for motor vehicles without installation. Therefore, similar
with MSIC G451 section feedback, education background is not a priority to be in the sales job
positions. Experiences and interpersonal skills are more recognised by the employers.

The analysis of the workforce education background in MSIC G452 section indicated that
overall, the employers recognise workforce with skill background to have satisfying and very
satisfying performance. This was shown in the feedback on workforce with SKM Level 1-3
certificates, DKM certificate, and Malaysian Advanced Skills Diploma (DLKM) certificate, where most
of the employers are satisfied with their work performance. In contrast, around 3% of employers are
either less or not satisfied with the work performance of workforce with SPM, diploma, degree, and
other certificates background. This indicated that the workforce does not met the skill level required
by the employers in this section. This feedback is in line with the nature of business for MSIC G452
section which focuses on the repair and maintenance of vehicles, hence requires high technical
skilled workforce.

Similarly, employers in MSIC G454 section are mostly satisfied with workforce with technical
skill background. 100% of the employers are satisfied with the DKM holder workforce, followed by
SKM Level 1-3 holder, around 94%. Meanwhile, workforce with DLKM background has the highest
very satisfying work performance. From the feedback, employers of MSIC G454, especially those
involved with high performance motorcycle business and activities, highly recognise workforce with
formal technical background. The same trend was shown for MSIC C293 and MSIC E383 sections.

116
Even though the number of companies related in both sections are significantly smaller compared
to other sections, the workforce with skill certificates, especially DKM and DLKM backgrounds
produce satisfying work performance. Meanwhile, in the MSIC S960 section, workforce with diploma
background exhibits the most satisfying performance while SKM Level 1-3 holders shows more on
the fair and less satisfying work performance as shown in Figure 4-70. From the employers’
feedback, only automotive related SKM graduates were employed as the vehicle examiners.
However, graduates with automotive diploma background are preferable to be the vehicle examiners
compare to the SKM Level 1-3 graduates.

From this analysis, it is suggested that workforce with skill and technical background will
produce high quality work and perform better compared to others due to early training and early
exposure to the work environment. High cognitive level workers are also appreciated by the
automotive aftermarket employers as they can perform well in the sales and services department or
in the managerial positions as having the skill background will assist them in explaining or giving
advice from the technical aspect.

Figure 4-65: MSIC G451 employers’ satisfaction on the workforce performance based on education
background

117

Figure 4-66: MSIC G452 employers’ satisfaction on the workforce performance based on education
background

Figure 4-67: MSIC G453 employers’ satisfaction on the workforce performance based on education
background

118

Figure 4-68: MSIC G454 employers’ satisfaction on the workforce performance based on education
background

Figure 4-69: MSIC C293 and MSIC E383 employers’ satisfaction on the workforce performance
based on education background

119

Figure 4-70: MSIC S960 employers’ satisfaction on the workforce performance based on education
background

120

4.10 Supply Analysis

Table 4-10: Automotive Aftermarket NOSS with SLaPB and SLDN graduates produced from 2017 to
2019 (Jabatan Pembangunan Kemahiran, 2020)

No NOSS Programme NOSS Code
1 After Sales - Service Management G452-002-5:2017
2 After Sales - Service Operation G452-002-4:2017
3 Automotive - After Sales Service Manager
4 Automotive - After Sales Service Executive TP-300-5
5 Automotive Executive TP-300-4
6 Commercial Vehicle - Repair Service P-080-4
7 Commercial Vehicle Servicing & Maintenance G452-001-2:2017
8 Commercial Vehicle Servicing & Maintenance TP-307-3:2012
9 Commercial Vehicle Technician TP-307-2:2012
10 Commercial Vehicle Mechanic P-030-3
11 Automotive Spray Painting P-030-2
12 Automotive Spray Painting TP-306-3:2012
13 Automotive Spray Painting TP-306-2:2012
14 Automotive Panel Beating TP-306-1:2012
15 Automotive Panel Beating TP-311-3:2013
16 Automotive Panel Beating Supervisor TP-311-2:2013
17 Automotive Panel Beater P-091-3
18 Earth Moving Equipment Maintenance P-091-2
19 Earth Moving Equipment Senior Technician TP-100-3:2013
20 Earth Moving Equipment Technician TP-100-3
21 Earth Moving Equipment Mechanic TP-100-2
22 Motorsports Technician (4 Wheel) TP-100-1
23 Automotive After Sales Servicing TP-301-3
24 Motor Vehicle Senior Technician TP-300-3:2013
25 Light Vehicle - Repair Service TP-300-3
26 Automotive After Sales Servicing TP-300-2:2016
27 Motor Vehicle Technician TP-300-2:2013
28 Motor Vehicle Mechanic TP-300-2
29 Motor Vehicle Mechanic P-115-2
30 Automotive Air Conditioning Servicing P-115-1
31 Natural Gas for Vehicle (NGV) Installation & TP-121-3:2012
TP-303-3:2012
Maintenance
32 Automotive Electrical Technologist TP-310-5
33 Automotive Electrical Technologist TP-310-4
34 Light Vehicle Wheel Servicing TP-308-2:2012
35 Tyre Service Supervisor P-117-3
36 Electric Bus Operation TP-331-3:2014
37 Vehicle Maintenance & Service TP-333-1:2014

No NOSS Programme 121
38 Automotive Technician
39 Motorcycle Servicing & Maintenance NOSS Code
40 Motorcycle Servicing & Maintenance P-119-1
41 Motorcycle Servicing & Maintenance
TP-118-3:2012
TP-118-2:2012
TP-118-1:2012

Figure 4-71: Number of Graduates from MOHR Accredited Centre (SLaPB) from 2017-2019 (Jabatan 122
Pembangunan Kemahiran, 2020)

123

From the recent three years, 2017 until 2019, from the total number of 84 NOSS as
mentioned in Table 3-9 in Section 3.4, only 41 NOSS programmes developed by JPK have
graduates, as listed in Table 4-10 (Jabatan Pembangunan Kemahiran, 2020). The total number of
29,858 graduates has successfully completed the training run by JPK Accredited Centre (SLaPB)
(Jabatan Pembangunan Kemahiran, 2020). From Figure 4-71, it can be seen that the graduates
came from MSIC G452 and MSIC G454 sections only. In the past three years, there were no supplies
for MSIC G451, MSIC C393, MSIC E383, and MSIC S960 sections. The 29,858 graduates
comprised of several SKM levels, which indicates different competency levels. As described in
Figure 4-71, majority of the graduates came from SKM Level 2, with a total number of 16,419
graduates. SKM Level 3 indicated a lower number with 8,663 graduates produced in the recent three
years. Only approximately 2,300 graduates were produced for the managerial positions under SKM
levels, which are DKM and DLKM.

Other than SLaPB, JPK also produced the skilled workforce with SKM through the SLDN
programmes. These programmes are conducted at the companies or industries that have been
approved by JPK to become the Accredited Centres for SLDN. Currently there are 312 companies
running these programmes across the country (Jabatan Pembangunan Kemahiran, 2020). The
programmes cover all seven sub-sectors in MSIC sections related to the automotive aftermarket
industry. From 2017 to 2019, the total graduates from the SLDN programmes are 2,108. Same as
PB, majority of the graduates came from SKM Level 2 with a total number of 1,072 graduates. The
least came from the managerial background, which is DKM only, with the number of graduates of 32
only. In the past three years, there were no graduates for DLKM.

Figure 4-72: Number of Graduates from MOHR Accredited Centre (SLDN) from 2017-2019 (Jabatan 124
Pembangunan Kemahiran, 2020)

125

From the Wholesale and Retail Trade Census 2019, the total number of companies running
the aftermarket background was 62,467 companies (Department of Statistics Malaysia, 2019). From
this number, only 0.9% were categorised as medium-sized companies, which were approximately
562 companies. By making an assumption that only medium-sized companies are capable to be
certified as Accredited Centre (SLDN), out of 562 companies, only 57% are currently running the
SLDN programmes. From the survey, results obtained indicated that 58% of the respondents had
no information or were not aware of the SLDN programmes. 18% indicated that the programmes are
unnecessary and not related to their companies’ nature. 16% said that the companies have less
budget, facilities, and expertise. The rest of the respondents stated that the companies conduct in-
house training, have less autonomy, and are still in planning with the percentage number of 4%, 3%,
and 1%, respectively. The percentage fractions are illustrated in Figure 4-73.

Figure 4-73: Reasons of Not Implementing the SLDN Programmes by Respondents

The number of graduates for MOHE institutions were obtained from the statistical data of
Traces Study carried out in 2019 (Ministry of Higher Education, 2020). Graduates under this
governing body were segregated into four types of institutions; public universities, private
universities, polytechnics, and community colleges, Institut Latihan Kemahiran Belia dan Sukan
(Ministry of Youth and Sports), and Institusi Latihan Kemahiran Awam (Ministry of Rural
Development). The graphs represent the number of automotive specific programme graduates
produced at different levels of study.

126
Figure 4-74: Number of graduates with certificates from MQA Accredited Institutions