LIVID over the confusing statement on the minimum wage, Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) urged Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob to table the motion at the Parliament instead of just talking about it.
“Why not just raise the minimum wage to RM1,500 now? The Prime Minister (PM) should stop playing taichi on the matter.
“First, Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M Saravanan praised companies for raising the minimum wage to RM1,500 and now Ismail Sabri is asking government-linked companies (GLC) to do it.
“Just table the law at the Parliament. Why is the PM so worried about it since the Opposition also supports it?” queried its deputy chairperson S Arutchelvan in a statement.
Last month, the Government announced that it would be raising the minimum wage to RM1,500 by end of the year.
However, the announcement was met with opposition from the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF), which stated that now is not the right time to increase the cost of doing business and the proposal would derail economic recovery.
Yesterday, Ismail Sabri urged the private sector and GLC’s to pay their permanent employees a minimum wage of RM1,500 due to the rise in cost of living.
What about contract workers?
He added that the Government itself is ensuring that civil servants receive a salary and allowance amounting to at least RM1,500 monthly.
“Similarly, we urge companies in the private sector to do the same as a means to help especially those from low-income groups,” The Star reported him as saying.
Touching on the matter, Arutchelvan raised red flag over the Bera MP’s statement, as the latter only mentioned permanent employees in his remark and left out those on contract.
“It means that cleaners, who are employed under GLC Edgenda programme, may get left out from the minimum wage scheme.
“Therefore, we urge the Government to enact a law on it. Bear in mind that the RM1,500 threshold is way lower than what is proposed by the formula to calculate minimum wage,” he remarked. – March 12, 2022
