GEORGE TOWN: The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is not stopping the federal government from hiring people to fill vacancies in the various ministries and departments.
Public Services Commission (PSC) chairman Tan Sri Zainal Rahim Seman said, instead, the pandemic had created opportunities for more people to be hired.
He cited an example where the Health Ministry announced 2,000 new appointments especially nurses on contractual basis in the fight against Covid-19 at the height of the pandemic in March this year.
"The pandemic has got nothing to do with whether there is vacancy or not. It all depends on the yearly requirement of each ministries and departments.
"The public services hired thousands of people to go into their services because of Covid-19. It is not stopping them. (In fact, Covid-19) is creating more hiring," he said here today.
He was asked if there were many vacancies to be filled despite the Covid-19 pandemic this year, and the fact that the government might be short of money, as a result of the slew of assistance given to all Malaysians.
He was met after officiating at the opening of the PSC's interview centre at the Urban Transformation Centre (UTC) Penang in Komtar.
Present were state secretary Datuk Abdul Razak Jaafar, PSC deputy chairman Datuk Seri Zoal Azha Yusof and Penang Development Corporation general manager Datuk Mohd Bazid Kahar.
Elaborating, Zainal said between 13,000 and 15,000 people were hired into the public services yearly.
"Including contract workers, we hire roughly 22,000 people annually.
"We are not only talking about the PSC, there are many more (civil service) commissions such as the police, education, state authority and local authority.
"So, people have choices on where they want to go," he said, adding that some 250,000 people graduated from the institutions of higher learning annually.
Zainal said those interested in applying for government jobs could also apply through PSC's portal.
The PSC's interview centre began operations on Aug 24 in its own premises, after not having its own centre for the past one decade.
It has four interview rooms, including one virtual interview room.
The UTC Penang is the second UTC in the country to have the SPC's interview centre.
Following the Covid-19 pandemic, virtual interviews have been carried out with those from Putrajaya, Sabah and Sarawak.