The government must raise civil servant salaries in the wake of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which will be implemented next year, the civil service union said.

The Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) said the union is seeking up to 30 percent increase across the board.

Ceupacs deputy president I Zainal Ismail said that this would mean that if a civil servant earns RM900, his or her increment will be RM300. He also proposed that civil servants should get a two-month bonus.

Zainal argued that the demand is reasonable and that civil servant salaries have not been revised since 2007.

"We have not had a pay hike for a long time... We are not asking for it every year. We hope the government will review our salary every five years," he told Malaysiakini ahead of PM Najib Razak’s 2015 Budget speech at 4pm today.

In 2007, then-prime minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi raised civil servant salaries by 7.5 to 35 percent.

Zainal also said that while the union is not opposed to the GST, the government must consider its impact on the people’s pocket.

He said that the new tax, coupled with rise in fuel pump prices, would raise the cost of living for Malaysians.

"We believe government can afford to increase our salaries, especially after the implementation of GST."

Revise allowance

Besides a pay hike, Cuepacs is also demanding that the government raise the civil service’s housing and cost of living allowance (Cola).

Cuepacs wants housing allowance to go up from RM180 to RM450, and Cola from RM250 to RM300.

The union also urges the government to control house prices, saying that even civil servants cannot afford homes in 1Malaysia Civil Servants Housing programme (PP1AM).

He says that PP1AM homes, which cost between RM150,000 and RM200,000, are too expensive for many civil servants.

"So we hope the government can reduce the house prices to around RM70,000 to RM130,000," he said.

Meanwhile, Zainal slammed critics who claimed that the civil service is bloated.

"We have 140,000 civil servants in Malaysia, and compared to our population of 30 million, it is not enough."

He said that Malaysia is a developing country, which requires a large civil service to meet development needs.