KUCHING: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim should be congratulated for increasing the civil service salary.
Social Protection Contributors Advisory Association Malaysia (SPCAAM) International Labour advisor Callistus Antony D’Angelus pointed out that this is because Anwar has made a bold but long overdue move in revising the salary of civil servants in the country.
He added that with the salary hike, the progress cannot just stop there and a plan for progressive reform should be put in place.
“The next step simply has to be to increase the minimum wage to RM2,000.00 per month.
“While it will not be sufficient to meet the living wage level, it is a good next progressive step.
“We cannot rely on employers to do this voluntarily. This has to be driven at a policy level,” he said.
Following this, Callistus opined that the private sector has to do its bit in working on reforming the country.
“The first and biggest concern must always be the well-being of the people. Continuing to focus on profits of private enterprises as the primary objective of policies has resulted in a salary lag that has caused an acute cost-of-living crisis in the country,” he said.
Having said that, he urged Anwar to also encourage the Ministry of Human Resources be reformed and reshaped as a Ministry of Labour.
“The focus should be on the interest of labour. Ministries such as Finance and Trade and Industry are there to look out for the interests of investors and capital,” he added.
