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Civil servants' salaries and the coverage of the minimum wage mandate are the key issues the Prime Minister talked about tackling or to be looked into.
Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim delivered his Labour Day 2023 speech on Monday (1 May 2023), at a celebration event themed "Pekerja Pemangkin Wadah Malaysia Madani".
In his speech, the Prime Minister talked about key issues being tackled or to be looked into, including civil servants' salaries and the minimum wage mandate.
Highlights of the speech are as follows:
Among the points shared, PM Anwar affirmed that is time to re-evaluate and review the salaries of civil servants, especially those in lower grades.
The Prime Minister said this will be a top priority if, in the period of one year, there is a positive increase in the country's income and revenue. As cited by Bernama, he added that in the meantime, all bonus payouts and facilities such as education and health, that need to be assisted, will be done immediately once there is an allocation.
In addition to civil servants, the PM further affirmed that the salaries of private-sector employees will also be a top priority. "Every employee who contributes to their organisation should be given recognition irrespective of position and rank."
Next, the PM touched on the topic of minimum wages, sharing that the implementation of the minimum wage, which took effect from 1 May 2022, will be discussed in the Cabinet meeting next month.
As cited in a separate Bernama report, the PM noted that the minimum wage is "still difficult to implement", and that the implementation has been "a bit chaotic."
"That's why in the Cabinet meeting next month, we want to resolve it once and for all," he was quoted as saying. PM Anwar added that changes made will be announced accordingly.
Overall, the PM called on all parties to work closely in preparing Malaysia's human resources to drive economic growth and face future challenges, adding that the 2023 theme for Labour Day "reflects aspirations that support the principles of welfare, justice, mutual respect, courtesy as well as the cooperation of all citizens to join hands in building Malaysia into a civilised country."
Malaysia's HR Ministry looking to amend process of recognising workers' unions
In similar news, Minister of Human Resources V. Sivakumar has shared that the Human Resources Ministry will be making a series of amendments to the process of recognising workers' unions, so workers have an avenue to "fight for their rights and to seek justice."
According to Bernama, the minister said this matter would be "given due attention by the Government since there are employers who refuse to recognise unions in their companies.
Speaking at the Malaysian Trades Union Congress' Labour Day event on Sunday (30 April 2023), cited by Bernama, he added that the Government is also studying other issues such as pension for the private sector, a workers' health scheme, workers' insurance, employment guarantee, issues related to foreign worker welfare, and working with employers to provide career & education enhancement opportunities to workers with limited qualifications.
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Photos and videos: PM Anwar's Facebook
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