GEORGE TOWN – The Wage Subsidy Programme under the Pemulih stimulus package may have helped several industries survive during the lockdown, but this is not so for those under non-essential services, especially wellness centres.
This is because despite receiving aid via the programme, operators of wellness centres still had to furnish their operation expenses including rent and workers’ salaries despite not being allowed to open for business.
One such entrepreneur is Steve Wynn, who told The Vibes that he was now earning money by providing food delivery services on his bicycle.
“I have three reflexology spas in Penang, and the rent at the outlets are RM22,000 (Farlim), RM9,000 (George Town) and RM6,000 (Jelutong), totalling RM37,000 a month and I cannot let go of any of my staff after signing up for the programme.
“I have resorted to earning money through food delivery on my bicycle.
“I feel like a fool, and I feel so cheated by the government as I was one of the first to sign up for the programme.
“I thought it was a good deal as I get to retain the 15 employees that I have. I used to have therapists from Thailand but I sent them back due to the lockdown and hired locals instead, but now I am stuck!
“I cannot operate, but I still have to pay for everything. Even with the RM600 subsidy per employee, I still have to pay the bulk of their salary and contribute to their Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and Social Security Organisation (Socso), without any kind of cash inflow.
“I just cleared last year’s RM200,000 debt due to the first movement control order (MCO) and conditional MCO, but it continues to mount this year.
“My sector is the first to close and the last to open, and my business has been closed since January 2021 due to MCO 2.0. Even when we were allowed to open it was only for a month before the MCO was reimposed again,” he said.
On June 28, Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said struggling employers can claim for wage subsidies after Putrajaya removed the condition that made aid available only for staffers earning below RM4,000.
Muhyiddin said under the latest iteration of the programme, announced under Pemulih, a further RM3.8 billion will be allocated for this purpose, on top of the RM15 billion already rolled out.
“The initiative will benefit 2.5 million workers nationwide, limited to 500 staff per employer, with RM600 monthly given for each employee for a period of four months.”
Once known for being wealthy due to his business, Wynn said that he was now being shunned by people who see him delivering food on his bicycle.
“When I bought the bicycle, I had the money. Now I have no choice because I don’t have a motorcycle or a license.
“At this point, I need to find money to feed myself. I need to pay for the three houses I own.
“I can’t sell them now because who is going to buy them? I can’t close my business because I will lose more money doing so.”
Wynn said it was also illogical to shut wellness centres while saloons were being allowed to operate.
“For massage spas, the standard operating procedures can omit full body massage, but how about allowing foot reflexology?
“We can follow strict SOPs (standard operating procedures) like wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), wearing face shields and masks, wearing gloves, everything. If the room used to fit eight people, we can have four people now. We can disallow walk-ins.
“All these SOPs which were submitted to the National Security Council (NSC), had already been approved during the first MCO, so why are they categorising us under the negative list now,” asked Wynn. – The Vibes, July 18, 2021
