Singapore employees recognise the importance of a global workforce but are not adequately trained for it, according to a survey by recruitment agency Kelly Services.

Nine in ten workers agree that being more globally oriented in the way they work is important for their career prospects. Over 3,000 workers in Singapore responded to the survey.

However, figures show that the younger generation is not well-equipped with the skills to deal with a diverse work environment. Only 69% of the Gen Y respondents (18-29 years old) felt that they have the skills to work with people of different nationalities and cultures, as compared to 88% of the Gen X (30-47 years old) and 86% of the baby boomers (48-65 years old).

“Generally, older employees have greater exposure and working experience in their fields. Hence, they are more equipped to interact with their foreign counterparts from different countries and cultures, whereas Gen Y employees are still in the early stages of their career and need to build a more solid foundation in the workplace,” explains Asia Pacific Senior Vice-president of Kelly Services, Mr Dhirenda Shantilal.

Also, 52% of the respondents said that they are not receiving the training they need to deal with other cultures. This makes Singapore fall behind other Asian countries like India (34%), Malaysia (41%) and Hong Kong (50%) in terms of preparing workers for a global workforce.