KUALA LUMPUR – Government contract workers in cleaning, gardening and security services are demanding that they be paid the minimum wage of RM1,500.
Helped by Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), a group of them staged a protest in Putrajaya yesterday outside the Prime Minister’s Office, appealing to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to intervene.
“The government has a great responsibility in ensuring that the law is actually enforced so that it achieves the policy’s intentions,” the workers said in their memorandum that was handed over to the Prime Minister’s Office.
PSM, which reported the protest on the party’s website, said the workers, who are mostly from the lower-income or B40 category, are hired by companies contracted to do maintenance and support staff work for the government.
The workers are represented by Jaringan Pekerja Kontrak Kerajaan (JPKK), which is a network comprising government contract staff employed for these jobs.
JPKK coordinator M. Sivaranjani was quoted as saying that the workers were still being paid RM1,200 a month and had hoped to be paid an additional RM300 come January this year, after the initial enforcement of the minimum wage was extended from May last year to the start of 2023.
However, their hopes were dashed when the new unity government announced another extension, until July 1 this year.
“This is the second time that relaxation (for paying the RM1,500 minimum wage) has been given. This is the second time B40 employees have been cheated,” said Sivaranjani.
The exemption or flexibility given to employers from paying the new minimum wage applies to those who have less than five workers.
However, JPKK said the contract companies were taking advantage of the extension.
Among the reasons the contract companies gave was that the government had yet to adjust the quotation for their services in tender documents, JPKK said.
Many contract companies engaged by the government are also small outfits that do not have strong financial standing, it added.
In their memorandum, JPKK said the government should abolish the contract system and directly hire maintenance and support staff.
The protest yesterday also saw the participation of 25 non-governmental organisations that included human rights and labour groups. – The Vibes, February 3, 2023
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