WITH Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob announcing that the Government would raise the minimum wage on May 1, 2022, a veteran unionist urged the former to legislate it at the Parliament soon.
“We welcome the announcement but here is the deal. The Government should take it to the Parliament and legislate the new minimum rate.
“As long as you don’t pass a law on it, it will just remain an announcement,” Union Network International-Malaysia Labour Centre (UNI-MLC) president Datuk Mohamed Shafie BP Mammal told FocusM.
Yesterday, Ismail Sabri announced at the UMNO annual general assembly (AGM) that the Government would raise the minimum age to RM1,500 on May 1.
However, he mentioned that the rule would only be enforced on companies with five employees or more, and there may be exceptions for small companies that are not in the black.
“And we understand that some small and medium enterprises (SMEs) may not be able to rase the minimum wage.
“So, we will be discussing the possibility of deferring implementation of the new minimum wage rate on SMEs that are unable to afford it,” Malaysiakini reported him as saying.
Touching on the matter, Shafie stressed that the minimum wage should be raised across the board without any exceptions given that the cost of living has skyrocketed since COVID-19 hit the Malaysian shores.
He also questioned whether domestic helpers would also be enjoying the minimum wage, given the group always get short-changed in such matters.
“The minimum wage should be applied across the board with no discrimination to anyone. It’s time for the Government to recognise domestic helpers as workers too,” Shafie quipped.
Levy the ultra-rich to subside minimum wage
He then urged Ismail Sabri to stick to his guns on the matter and not make a U-turn later, given that the employers’ groups may raise objections to it soon.
“Your honour is at stake here, Mr Prime Minister. Please remain steadfast on this and get it done as promised,” Shafie said.
On related matter, Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) deputy chairperson S Arutchelvan urged the Government to help genuine SME’s, which are unable to raise the minimum wage, by coming up with bold ideas instead of exempting them.
“Putrajaya should impose the Wealth Tax and Capital Gains Tax on the ultra-rich. The revenue from these taxes can be used to cross subsidise the minimum wage to help our poor workers,” he stated.
While the RM1,500 was still lower than the amount proposed by the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) and Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs), Arutchelvan said it was still a significant hike as the amount is being raised by RM300 at one-go.
We welcome this announcement. It is a victory for those of us who kept pushing for the RM1,500 rate now and not later,” he remarked. – March 20, 2022
Main photo credit: Malay Mail
