Government vs. Private Online Job Portals in Pakistan. Who can deny the importance of money as one of the basic necessities of life??? People work day and night to earn in order to fulfill their needs. The advent of civilization has broadened the horizons for people to work in different fields. Both public and private sectors contribute to the job market everywhere. Yet, the jobs only cannot provide all the population with work opportunities.
The unemployment rate in Pakistan is 5.8% according to the latest report issued by World Bank. This statistics is the number of workers from the total eligible, economically active population. This percentage indicates that around 5.3 million people are unemployed and looking for work in different fields. Around 17.8 % of the total population has access to internet services. Although that doesn’t constitute the majority of the population, yet the people making use of this facility is not nominal either.
1.Government Job Portals
Almost all the government organizations in Pakistan have a separate portal to announce the available vacancies in their respective organization. A few years ago, they used to post their jobs only in newspapers; but now they are making use of digital technology as well. Government departments of Pakistan that post their jobs through online portals include the central and provincial ministries, national civil services, armed forces, national industries, and so on.
Pakistan.gov.pk is the largest online portal that holds information about almost all the government departments, ministries, and institutions. It is the best website for government jobs in Pakistan.
2.Private Job Portals
The private sector has witnessed a boom in recent years and so has the job market in the private regions. The virtual world of the internet has specifically enabled skilled and knowledgeable youth of Pakistan to set up their own enterprises, hence multiplying jobs for those who have related skills and craftsmanship.
The biggest and most widely used job search engines in Pakistan are from the private sector. These online portals have satiated the need of users looking for information on available vacancies online. There are plenty of online private job portals but the prominent ones include websites like http://rightjobs.pk, rightjobs.pk, rozee.pk, mustakbil.com, roziroti.pk, byrozgar.com and many more. These websites occupy the major market share of job applicants looking for jobs in Pakistan.
Most of these websites rely on the vacancies published by both public and private sectors in the leading newspapers as well as the official websites. The private companies and firms looking for suitable and competent candidates also use these platforms directly.
Comparison of Public and Private Sector Online Job Portals
1.Design and layout
Both government and private online job portals in Pakistan have the same audience to cater to, yet there is an apparent difference when it comes to the web layout of the two. The government bodies’ websites usually seem monotonous and drab. This owes to the strict content and absence of all sorts of ads and such spam content.
On the contrary, the private online job search engines are usually loaded with all sorts of ads and click baits that tend to add color to the overall layout. Because of the intense competition, private job portals keep improving the design and layout of their websites to make them look more appealing.
2.Navigation and Search Tools
The websites for government jobs in Pakistan are managed and run by IT departments of the respective organization. The portals are strictly used for informative purposes with no suggestions or regular updates. On the other hand, private websites for online jobs are aware of the fact that if they do not upgrade and improve continuously they will fall behind in the competition.
3.Types of Jobs
The government job portals in Pakistan only display jobs available in their institutions, whereas the private online job portals flaunt almost all sorts of jobs available from all walks of life. They include vacancies in government organizations, private firms, and personal entrepreneurs. Thus catering to a far larger number of users and serving both ends successfully. Even people looking for personal assistants and aides also advertise on private portals.
4.Success Rate
The government job portals have their own shortcomings when it comes to management and administration. The candidates applying for vacancies in government organizations usually have to wait for a long time or resort to personal contacts. Most people complain about never succeeding at securing a job when applying through government portals.
The private online job portals in Pakistan usually interact directly with many employers and the number of applicants succeeding in getting jobs through these is far higher than government job portals. This also owes to the higher number of jobs and variety available on private online job portals. No wonder these websites witness such massive audiences and subscribers. People tend to take the word of mouth of a successful candidate, as it is generally a norm in society. This fact also contributes to a substantial increase in traffic on online job portals in the private sector.
5.User Friendly
Most of the websites for government jobs in Pakistan have rigid designs whereas private websites are usually flexible. They are user-friendly as their aim is to attract as many users as possible. The websites have extensive search tools that serve the users to look for a precise job in a few simple steps. The government websites usually lack information on how to and manifest the purpose of the employer only.
6.Applicant Database
All job portals in Pakistan, whether private or government, build up a database where all the information of applicants is stored. While there has been no complaint of unauthorized use of this database information by the government departments, some people have filed complaints of private job portals selling their data to advertisers.
7.CV Builder
An inspiring CV that holds appropriate information about the candidate is the first impression on the employer and paves way for further scrutiny and shortlisting. Almost all the private online job search websites come with their own tools for the applicants to generate their CV right there on the domain. However, no such facility is available on the government counterpart; most government job portals of Pakistan rely on manual input on the data by the applicant.
8.Applicants
The government sector jobs often advertised, cater the educated class only. The menial jobs are usually not advertised on the official government websites. This restricts the number of applicants and the type of people referring to this website in search of work.
The diversity of vacancies displayed on private online job portals is immense. Jobs ranging from the highest order like CEOs and general managers to the laborers can be found on all these links easily. Even many companies and organizations use these portals to sort out a varied range of applicants. Most of these websites are referred by successful applicants to friends and acquaintances.
The Bottom Line:
The Internet has opened new doors of opportunities for everyone everywhere. Online search engines have a tremendous impact on the job market and promote healthy competition. Both, government and private job portals in Pakistan are working hand in hand to help overcome the menace of unemployment in our country.