The minimum wage for workers in Peninsular Malaysia has been set at RM900 a month or RM4.33 per hour while for Sarawak, Sabah and Labuan, the quantum is RM800 per month or RM3.85 an hour, Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announced tonight.

He said the minimum wage would cover workers in all sectors of the economy, except for the domestic help service or maid, gardener and similar employment categories.

"The minimum wage will take effect six months from the date the minimum wage order is gazetted," he said in speech when announcing the minimum wage for the private sector in Putrajaya.

najib in penang usm dialogue 220412 The announcement came in conjunction with the Workers' Day tomorrow and as a gift from the federal government to the country's workers.

Najib said the government would provide an implementation mechanism so that the minimum wage initiative would not burden the employers or be detrimental to the workers, by allowing part of allowances or fixed cash payments to be taken into account when calculating the wage quantum.

However, he said, for micro enterprises, the timeframe to implement the wage structure was 12 months from the date the minimum wage order is gazetted.

The prime minister said the 12-month exemption would not cover professional firms such as medical and dental clinics, legal firms, architectural firms and consultancy firms.

Flexible implementation mechanism

These firms would have to implement the minimum wage order in six months, even if they only had five workers or less.

"Sufficient time is given to allow employers to restructure their business operations as well as the workers' salaries.

"The government also allows a flexible implementation mechanism so that employers who are genuinely unable to implement the minimum wage policy can apply for an extension of the transition period," Najib said.

He said the government was aware of the demand for the wage be set at between RM1,200 and RM1,500 but stressed that for a start, based on the recommendations by the National Wages Consultative Council and a World Bank study, the quantum should not be set too high.

"If the minimum wage is set at higher than RM900 (basic salary), this is expected to affect the economy, the labour market and the inflow of foreign investments.

"If this happens, the industry cannot operate properly and many workers will lose their jobs. The government cannot allow this to happen because it will be detrimental to the welfare of the workers as well as to the nation's interest," he added.

- Bernama