Jobs in Malaysia
Pekerjaan di Malaysia

Kerja is a simple way to refer to jobs in Malaysia. For example:

"Apa kerja kamu?"
"What is your job?"

"Kerja saya tukang elektrik."
"My job is an electrician."

The fancy way of saying it is to use a synonym of kerja which is also the root word added with a prefix and suffix, pekerjaan. For example:

What is your occupation?
Apakah pekerjaan kamu?

I work as a mechanic.
Saya bekerja sebagai mekanik.

Why is your service in demand?
Mengapakah perkhidmatan kamu diperlukan?

The driving culture in Malaysia is " Go fast as long as you get it". Consequently, I have a lot of cars to repair everyday.
Budaya memandu di Malaysia ialah "Biar cepat asalkan dapat". Akibatnya setiap hari, saya perlu membaiki banyak kereta.

What is your occupation?
Apakah pekerjaan kamu?

I work as an adjuster.
Saya bekerja sebagai ajuster.

Why is your service in demand?
Mengapakah perkhidmatan kamu diperlukan?

Many people put in claims to insurance companies to fix their cars. So I am flooded with income.
Banyak orang mengemukakan tuntutan kepada syarikat insurans bagi membaiki kereta. Jadi, saya dibanjiri rezeki.

As you can see, mekanik and ajuster are very much English loan words. Bahasa Malaysia itself has convenient ways to name occupations by using two words:

1.Tukang- basically it is a craftsman.

Trishaw man is tukang beca. ( Craftsman of trishaw )

Electrician is tukang elektrik. ( Craftsman of electricity )

Printer is tukang cetak. ( Craftsman of printery )

Goldsmith is tukang emas. ( Craftsman of gold ) and the list is endless.

2. Juru- A prefix which means specialist, expert.

Jurupandu,guide. ( Expert in guiding ).

Jururawat, nurse. ( Expert in attending to patients )

Jurutera, engineer. ( Expert in machines )

Juru ampu ( Expert in flattering and currying favors ) :-) Again, the list of experts or 'experts' is endless.

General ways of talking about your job:

Pekerja, worker.

Kakitangan, staff.

Kerja sendiri, self-employed.

Makan gaji, employee.

And not forgetting pengusaha, entrepreneur - highly esteemed and in demand jobs in Malaysia

Lottery ticket entrepeneur
People forever flocking in and around my shop
'Pengusaha' nombor empat ekor
Orang selalu berkerumun di dalam dan di sekeliling kedai saya.

Mamak shop entrepeneur
Where other eateries go bankrupt, mamak shops mushroom.
Pengusaha kedai mamak
Di tempat kedai makan lain gulung tikar, kedai mamak tumbuh bagai cendawan. ( I really shoud start selling roti canais )

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