KUALA LUMPUR – The progressive wage system policy has been approved at the cabinet level and the details will be tabled during the upcoming Budget 2024 in October.
Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli said the system is expected to be implemented in April or May next year, hence the reason why the policy has to be included in the budget tabling.
“The policy has been approved in principle as well as the approach and then we have to go through a series of processes including bringing down to all stakeholders and the level of coverage for specific groups.
“Thereafter, we will translate it into the financial commitment that the government has to do and then we will go through the budget process,” he told reporters after the signing ceremony of the Executive Digital Leadership Programme here today.
He said the government puts more focus on the development of states during the budget in an effort to bridge the economic development gap between states in Malaysia.
“We have three categories actually...one that has been given priority (Sarawak, Sabah, Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah and Perlis).
“The second is for states with growth that have their own economic development without much injection from the federal government (Penang, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur) while the third is for states in the middle (Perak, Johor, Negri Sembilan and Melaka).
“This is also a change that we are refining because we also need to be fair to certain states such as Perak, Negri Sembilan and Melaka,” he said.
Budget 2024 has been scheduled for tabling in Parliament on October 13. – Bernama, August 24, 2023
