HRD Corp clears the air on micro-credential fee

HRD Corp clears the air on micro-credential fee

Imposition of fee will not raise cost to employers or limit number of employees trained.

HRD Corp says micro-credentials are aimed at creating a workforce that is skilled and certified.
KUALA LUMPUR:
The Human Resource Development Corporation’s (HRD Corp) head took to LinkedIn to respond to criticisms levelled at the government’s human resource training body for charging employers a micro-credential fee.

Chief executive Shahul Dawood explained that the imposition of the RM300 fee per employee for each training programme should not burden employers as the levy will be included in the course structure within the ceiling limit for each scheme.

“This will ensure that the costs are not unnecessarily transferred to employers and will not impact the overall number of employees trained,” he explained in his post.

He stressed that not all programmes and courses registered under HRD Corp are required to be micro-credentialed, adding that a list of courses that require micro-credentials will be updated soon.

“All other courses that do not require micro-credentials can continue per current guidelines,” he added.

Shahul was responding to calls by the Small and Medium Enterprise Association (Samenta) and Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) for abolishment of the fee on the grounds that it hiked up learning costs and would result in fewer employees being trained.

Shahul said a technical working committee comprising employer associations will be established soon to address concerns so as to reach a mutual understanding on the implementation mechanism and fees.

He assured all parties that HRD Corp will continue to engage with employer representatives for views and feedback on all policy and technical issues pertaining to its rollout.

The initiative was introduced to improve the quality of training programmes funded by the HRD Corp levy and to add value for employers and their employees as these short courses will come with a certification.

It was the result of research that indicated only 4.4% (44,932) out of 1,028,793 training places funded by the HRD levy were for certification programmes. Of these, very few were quality certified.

Micro-credentials are short-term courses that award the learner a “micro certification”.

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