The Minimum Wage Raise To Benefit Employers And Employees
The Malaysian government recently announced that the minimum wage will be raised from RM1,500 to RM1,700 per month. The new minimum wage will take effect 1st February 2025. However, the effective date only affects employers with five workers or more. As for employers or businesses with less than five workers, the effective date to implement the new minimum wage will be 1st August 2025.
Under the MADANI government, the people’s income is a priority as it is one of the essential components of an economic restructuring initiative. The initiative will only be successful when people earn meaningful wages to have a better quality of life.
Additionally, the Human Resources Ministry will publish guidelines for starting salaries in the industry. For example, the starting salary of industrial production technicians is RM2,290; mechanical engineers should earn RM3,380, and professional creative content designers should have a salary of RM2,985.
Government Initiatives to Boost Income and Provide Protection for Vulnerable Groups
Following the pilot programme for the Progressive Wage Policy in June 2024, the policy will be fully implemented next year with a budget of RM200 million, benefitting 50,000 workers.
On a similar spectrum of enhancing income, the government will allocate RM250 million to the People’s Income Initiative (IPR) to eradicate extreme poverty. The IPR programme enables the extremely poor to improve their livelihood through income generation opportunities made available via agricultural entrepreneurship, the food industry and the operational servicing industry. The allocation for IPR aims to increase individual participation from the impoverished group in the programme.
While enhancing income is essential, enabling people’s protection via insurance and takaful will also benefit the people. Hence, the Skim Perlindungan Tenang will continue to benefit two million Sumbangan Tunai Rahmah recipients. Eligible recipients can claim an RM30 voucher to partially cover the cost of Perlindungan Tenang products, offering protection against death, personal accidents, and general risks such as fire and floods.
