THE Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) wish list for the national fiscal Budget 2027 is for the minimum wage revision to be divided to localise areas such as urban, semi-urban and rural districts instead of nationwide.
This is because hotels operating in urban areas such as city centres, semi-urban and rural localities have a different costing mechanism, said MAH vice-president Datuk Khoo Boo Lim.
Costing in the country works in tandem with the rise in costs in each localised area and the respective 13 states.
In the Klang Valley to Selangor metropolitan, the costs differ from those of hoteliers operating in Kelantan or Pahang, Khoo said.
Khoo said that it would be burdensome if the proposed revision of the minimum wage were made uniform across the board.
He also said that the minimum wage must be tailored to the localised needs of employers and the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to prevent mismatching and a spike in the operating costs of hospitality properties.
"Some hoteliers are comfortable earning RM2,000 in, for example, Pengkalan Hulu in Perak but in George Town, Penang, the same sum is insufficient due to the living cost factors," said Khoo.
He urged the Finance Ministry to conduct an in-depth cost analysis on the living cost factors before sanctioning the minimum wage rise.
MAH also wants more incentives in terms of breaks in commercial electrical tariffs and water rates to compensate for the rise in operating costs.
"Hotels may be operating, but the profit margin is hardly anything to brag about. It is a close line between profit and losses," said the MAH veteran.
Penang Malaysian Association of Travel and Tour Agents (MATTA) chapter president Carolyn Leong also wants more incentives to spur travel and tourism activities since the Visit Malaysia 2026 campaign is expanded to next year. - October 8, 2026.
