MTUC CALLS FOR EMERGENCY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR WORKERS OUT OF WORK
Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) urges the government to
immediately put in place an emergency relief scheme for the suddenly
unemployed as they seek new employment. Like the recent floods,
unemployment can also come suddenly and unexpectedly, and affected
workers and their families will need some emergency help to survive the
situation and get back on their feet.
The worker in Malaysia, if he/she were to lose their job, requires
immediate emergency financial assistance whilst he looks for another
employment. Today, the worker is burdened with monthly financial
obligations like food, clothing, basic amenities (water, electricity,
sewage bills, telecommunication and television), healthcare,
transportation and children’s education. Additionally, most workers have
monthly financial obligations to make payments towards home and car
loans.
Due to the lack of a good, efficient and affordable public transport
system in most parts of Malaysia, the worker has been forced into having
to purchase a car, whereby on an average this entails an average
monthly payment of RM500 to the loan provider. Likewise, with the
Malaysian government’s push for workers to buy their own homes, many
have bought houses and this too means monthly loan payments. Many
workers also buy furniture and household appliances through
hire-purchase schemes.
As such, if a worker is suddenly wrongfully dismissed, it creates
great financial problems to the worker and their families, and there is
an urgent need to put in place an emergency unemployment assistance
scheme as is now present in many countries, including neighbouring
Thailand. This assistance would be temporary in nature, lasting possibly
for a period of maybe not more than 6 -12 months, being the time
required for the out of job worker to find a suitable new employment.
Without such emergency financial assistance, the unemployed can very
easily slide into abject poverty – losing their home, having their car
towed away, their furniture and household appliance re-possessed.
The Thailand’s Unemployment Assistance program which has been
operational since 2004, provides ‘for unemployment resulted from
termination of employment or laid-off, the worker will receive 50% of
wages for not more than 180 days within 1 year’. There were of course
conditions that the said applicant be ready to make all necessary
efforts to find employment, and even undergo whatever required skills
training.
In Malaysia, reasonably such monthly assistance could be 50% of wages
or RM1,000, whichever the higher. There is already speculation that
Malaysia maybe facing difficult time, and there is a possibility that
some workers may be out of a job.
MTUC joins the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) in calling on
employers not to dismiss their employees following the expected slowdown
in economic growth this year (Bernama, 26/1/2015), and reiterates the
importance of trade unions especially in difficult times. Trade Unions
would be able to sit down with employers and work out concrete solutions
that will benefit both worker and employer whist manoeuvring turbulent
periods.
To ensure workers are kept employed, the Malaysian government now
provides financial assistance to companies to conduct trainings during
slow periods so that workers will continue to be in employment. This may
work in some cases but not all – as we still see workers being
terminated and retrenched, and these need urgent temporary financial
assistance immediately for the wellbeing of these workers and their
families.
This assistance can reliably only come from the government, and it is
proposed that this is done through SOCSO/PERKESO. The employer, being
mostly companies, is unreliable because many just end up with no monies
in their coffers even to pay out back-wages or even termination
benefits.
MTUC urges that Malaysia immediately put in place this necessary
social protection for workers that find themselves suddenly with no
employment and income, will prevent these workers and their families
from sliding down the slippery slope of poverty.
Secretary General
Source: MTUC Website
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