KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA — A “special incentive” of 60 per cent of monthly wages will be given to companies in sectors that rely heavily on migrant labour such as construction and plantations as part of the Malaysian government’s move to encourage hiring local workers.
Delivering his Budget 2021 speech in the Dewan Rakyat on Friday (6 November), Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Abdul Aziz said that employers will receive 40 per cent from the incentive, while 20 per cent will constitute a wage subsidy to the local worker said to be “replacing” the migrant worker.
The move is one of several enhancements to the existing PenjanaKerjaya programme under the Social Security Association (PERKESO).
Other enhancements include increasing incentives for employees earning RM1,500 and above from a monthly flat rate of RM800 to 40 per cent of their monthly income, subject to a maximum incentive of RM4,000, said Tengku Zafrul.
Firms hiring disabled workers as well as those who have been retrenched and unemployed for a long time will be given an additional incentive equivalent to 20 per cent of the employee’s monthly income, bringing the total incentive to employers’ amount to 60 per cent, he added.
The aforementioned incentives will be given out for a period of six months.
Employers of those who secured employment under the PenjanaKerjaya scheme will be able to claim a maximum training rate of RM7,000 — an increase from RM4,000.
This will enable their workers to upskill and obtain professional certification, said Tengku Zafrul.
A total of RM2 billion ringgit will be allocated to the above initiative. The enhancements are expected to increase the employment opportunities for 200,000 jobseekers, said the minister.