National Wages Consultative Council must immediately make recommendations for the INCREASE of MINIMUM WAGE now given the fact that food and basic necessities have had a big jump in prices...
'...National Wages Consultative Council with the responsibility to conduct studies on all matters concerning minimum wages and to make recommendation to the Government to make minimum wages orders according to sectors, types of employment and regional areas, and to provide for related matters. ...'
'...the Council shall take the following actions-
(a) have consultation with the public on the minimum wages rates and coverage in such manner as the Minister may determine; and
(b) collect and analyse data and information and conduct research on wages and the socioeconomic indicators....'
MINIMUM WAGE must be increased now - considering the increase of cost of food, etc that is drastic.
Why is the Wage Council not recommending to increasing Minimum Wage to RM2,000 now....or maybe they are 'rich' and do not understand the sufferings of the minimum waged worker...
Section 25
(1) The Council shall, at least once in every two years, review the minimum wages order.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), the Council may, on its own accord or upon the direction of the Government, review the minimum wages order.
YES, the Minimum Wage can be increased or decreased any time - there is no need to wait for 2 years. Now, we in Malaysia are suffering because of the increase of price of food and related items....and how much exactly should be the NEW Minimum Wage that will overcome this increase cost of living.
RM1,500 is no longer sufficient for a worker in Malaysia - to pay for food, drinks, rent/housing loans, clothes, children's education, healthcare, transportation, utilities. etc >>> and for most, they have to support not themselves but their family(and other dependents)
Foreign Companies and Investors are 'HAPPY" with the drop of the value of the Malaysian Ringgit - because now they have to pay less, considering that their own money is getting stronger.
When 1 USD was equivalent to RM3.8, RM1500 wages mean USD395 was needed to pay minimum wage in Malaysia
But when 1USD equals RM4.5, then USD334 only needed to pay minimum wage, USD61 saved in wages for 1 worker in Malaysia. So foreign investor and foreign companies are very very happy, as their cost has decreased, and that means more profits >>> Therefore, Malaysia becomes 'attractive' to the foreign investor/companies - and the government should claim 'success' in drawing in more companies.
Now, foreign companies and even local companies selling their products overseas - well if they are selling in USD and some foreign currency, many of which have long term agreements as to their cost of products >>>they too are happy, as their profits really have not been affected.
Of cause, Malaysian companies whose consumers are in Malaysia - they too are affected by the increasing cost of living.
Hence, the increase of MINIMUM WAGE increase must be targeted
(a) Foreign or MNC companies;
(b) Companies exporting products overseas;
(c) Government Linked Companies, and companies having government contract or government contractors
(d) Other companies, with a PROFIT of above RM...
Increased Minimum Wage should not be for small retailers, sundry shops, shops you see everywhere, mechanics, etc..(they would be encouraged pay minimum wage - but not mandatory or obligatory)
With the drop of the Malaysian Ringgit even with regard to fellow ASEAN nations must mean government failure. A few years back, RM1 equals to 10 Thai Baht, but now RM1 equals to about 7.5 Baht..In fact, Malaysian Ringgit is dropping compared to even many Asian nations as well...
Malaysia buys a lot of things including vegetables, rice, meat, fish, etc from our neighbors like Thailand >>> and because our RINGGIT has dropped in value to Thai Baht, more ringgit is needed >>> and thus, naturally COST of the products rise..
Malaysian governments of past has failed to ensure FOOD SECURITY to the extend that Malaysia itself produces sufficient rice, chili, vegetables, fish and meat enough for the food consumption in Malaysia.
Ringgit’s fall will lead to greater demand for local products, says economist
PETALING JAYA: The ringgit’s slide against the US dollar could lead to a renewed focus on efforts to source for cheaper locally-produced food, says an economist.
The price of imported products would rise as the value of the ringgit declined, Sunway University professor of economics Yeah Kim Leng explained.
This, he told FMT Business, would lead to lower consumption of imported food while consumers looked for cheaper domestically produced substitutes.
Given the country’s dependence on food imports, Yeah said, Malaysians should “brace ourselves” for a rise in inflation.
“That’s the best we can do. Higher import costs will spur efforts to source for cheaper products, especially those manufactured locally,” he added.
The ringgit slid to 4.5265/4.5285 when trading ended yesterday, charting a fresh 24-year low.
The nation’s dependence on food imports has risen significantly over the years. The food import bill came up to RM63 billion last year, up from RM55.4 billion in 2020 and RM51.4 billion the year before.
The bill is expected to be even higher this year, given that in just the first quarter, Malaysia has already imported RM17.8 billion worth of food products.
In a Bernama report on Tuesday, anti-inflation task force chief Annuar Musa was quoted as saying that prices of imported food such as meat, vegetables and fish had increased by 62%.
He said that continued dependence on imports using the US dollar would make Malaysia vulnerable to inflation.
Food inflation in Malaysia was 5.2% in May, 6.1% in June and 6.9% in July.
Another economist, Barjoyai Bardai of Universiti Tun Abdul Razak, said that while a weak ringgit would be a boon for exporters, it was bad news for the average Malaysian.
He pointed out that more than 80% of everything consumed in Malaysia, including raw materials used by manufacturers was imported.
“For the average consumers like us, the ringgit’s decline against the dollar will be translated into higher prices of imported goods,” he told FMT Business.
“It’s especially bad if we import raw materials and sell the products domestically, like how we import wheat and produce bread,” he said.
“So either producers have to reduce their profit margins or increase their prices, (both of which options) have limitations,” he added.
However Paolo Casadio, an economist at HELP University, offers a very different view.
He said the “excessive focus” on the US dollar and on “short-term factors” as reasons for the ringgit’s decline against the dollar had resulted in some “biased analysis”.
“The actual problem is the dollar’s strength, not the ringgit’s weakness. The greenback has strengthened in light of the US Federal Reserve’s move to raise interest rates to ease inflationary pressure,” he told FMT Business.
“We can reasonably forecast that the situation is going to reverse before the end of the year,” he said.
The Fed raised interest rate by 0.75% in July, the second time in a row it has increased the rate by such a wide margin. This was also the fourth increase this year.
Casadio said the best way to stem the slide of the ringgit against the US dollar in the short to medium-term would be for the government, in coordination with the central bank, to bring down inflation and maintain a dynamic economy.
The ringgit also closed lower against the Singapore dollar, Japanese yen, euro and British pound. - FMT, 15/9/2022
Expert: Act against those who don’t comply with new wage policy
- Nation
-
Monday, 29 Aug 2022
PETALING JAYA: Employers resisting changes in the law in relation to the new national minimum wage must face action, says an expert.
Malaysia University of Science and Technology economics professor Geoffrey Williams said he felt the slow implementation could be due to some employers resisting changes in the law.
“They are trying to find ways around it by cutting hours or benefits. This should be reported so that the authorities can act against companies that do not respect the law.
“The authorities should publish the list of companies penalised, just like they have done on chicken cartels, to set an example. This is an effective remedy and deterrent to others,” he added.
Prof Williams, who is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER), said this was the right time to introduce the higher minimum wage to help protect those on poverty-line income.
“The minimum wage has no impact on rising prices, which are caused by many other factors. It is the right time to introduce this small minimum wage increase to help protect people from the rising cost of living,” he said.
Prof Williams said a higher wage would result in an increase in local shops and this would help micro, small and medium enterprises and local family businesses.
He said the best way forward for employers was to fully implement the higher minimum wage and add more to the terms and conditions of their workers’ contracts to improve hiring, retention and productivity.
“Good employers will have no problem finding people,” he added.
Prof Williams said for employees, the best way forward was to quit jobs with low wages and poor terms and conditions.
“They should report companies that don’t comply with the minimum wage and other employment laws so that the authorities can take action,” he added.
However, MIER senior research fellow Dr Shankaran Nambiar said although the labour market had improved, many companies were still far from reaching the pre-pandemic level of business.
He said some employers might have been slow in implementing the new national minimum wage rate of RM1,500 due to challenging financial issues.
“For
many, rising costs means slim profit margins. Some have not been able
to keep afloat,” he said, adding that companies were still faced with a
labour shortage, especially those dependent on low-skilled migrant
workers. - Star, 29/8/2022
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