A common question of professionals nowadays is: where should I work? Should I work with the development sector or a private company?
Often, people would say just to find the “work culture” where you would best fit in. While the work culture is one of the deciding factors, it isn’t always what young professionals look at. Nowadays, young professionals, especially from families with low income or sick family members, look for jobs that are high paying or stable as long as it can support their family.
Here in the Philippines, we have a strong sense of filial piety. It’s often described as utang ng loob. Crudely defined in English as debt to pay, it’s seen in Philippine culture as a person having a sense of gratitude towards their family to pay for their expenses.
Because of this, professionals look for all sorts of jobs. They venture into different industries, hoping to support their families with the pay they get. However, that motivation can only go so far. Private companies in 2018 have reported that every 1 out of 4 professionals would leave the company with 77% of the time being possibly prevented by the company.
Now that you have graduated, where should you go? Government work or private company work? What are the advantages and disadvantages of working in a private company vs a public company? Here’s a quick overview:
Private Company
Private companies can range from gigantic like San Miguel or SME (Small-Medium Enterprises) like AHEAD. They also have a variety of industries: you have the food industry where San Miguel reigns as king, Jollibee for restaurants, tutorial and review belongs to AHEAD, cars belong to either Toyota or Isuzu. Then, there’s also the young game development industry with Ubisoft and other indie game developers.
The beauty of private companies is that they assure you stability. Especially ones that have lasted for 24 years and up (looking at you, AHEAD!), you know that you’ll have a steady flow of income. And if you’re a pioneer for a start-up, you get to see things grow. You’ll have bragging rights that it was your idea that made things work. And if things turn out for the best, you won’t be working for the money anymore. The money will be working for you.
However, things can also go downhill especially if you’ve climbed your way to the executive ranks. There will be politics. You won’t know who to trust. At times, you’ll find your virtues and code of ethics tested time and again. It will come to a point you won’t even recognize yourself in the mirror anymore. You would have drowned yourself into the company’s identity that you would have forgotten who you were before them.
If you’re rank-and-file then, chances are you’ll be bored with the usual 8-hour work schedule of 5 times a week. You’ll be turning your work in and sometimes, you’ll find yourself working harder than what the company is paying you for.
In short, everything looks like this:
| Stable pay | Politics can get messy. Especially if you’re one of the top brass. |
| If you’re in a start-up, you have bragging rights as one of the pioneers. | Possibility of losing your identity in the company. |
| Money can work for you. | Boredom with routine |
Public/ Government/ Development Sector
Public work can involve working with the government and non-government organizations. These are organizations that have a directive: to alleviate problems in a particular sector. There are different organizations and departments that you can work for especially if you find out that public work is your thing.
Depending on where you work, you can also get high pay. For example, if you are working in research, you can get paid high especially if your study will be the very first in the Philippines. They also pay at your level; they’re not the type to throw you back at zero if you came from another job of similar or same type. Another is that not all government work requires you to come in on an 8-5 schedule. Some only have weekly meetings and they even hold it online!
Unfortunately, there are also some problems here such as delayed payments. If you’re in Research, salaries can be delayed and this is a no-no especially for professionals who are supporting their families. Also, the government only uses specific banks to give out salaries so you’ll have to make an account there. You’ll also constantly need at least two (2) government IDs.
If you were to sum it up, everything looks like this:
| Good pay | Specific banks to work with. Need to make a new account. |
| Have more time with family | Must have at least two (2) government ID’s. |
| Their goal can be your passion. | Unstable pay |
Now that you’ve seen both sides, you’ll have to ask yourself what you prefer. Though, there are some things you can’t get rid of like the possibility of a toxic work environment, people you just don’t like, the feeling that your ideas are not being acknowledged. But at the end of the day, it’s about finding that motivation to work.