According to Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, with the ongoing assessment of Malaysia’s Public Service Remuneration Scheme, emphasis would be given to personnel engaged in professional technical work in the public sector.
The decision comes as the Malaysian government seeks solutions to address the country’s economic situation, with the remuneration scheme portrayed as a “paradigm shift” that the country should embrace when adjusting salaries for the civil sector, according to The Star. According to Anwar, this shift indicates the country’s need for a pay adjustment as opposed to modest modifications such as awarding more allowances, a two-decade-old routine.
“We must face the reality that Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) is now different, and engineering, IT, and digital technology are critical in the country.” “However, when it comes to government recognition, salary adjustments do not meet the requirement.” “This is where the paradigm shift, first mentioned by sociologist Thomas Kuhn, should be applied – drastic changes in the remuneration scheme,” he explained. In addition, the Prime Minister vowed that any proposal will recognise the critical role of government workers in technical professional positions in the national development agenda.
Furthermore, Anwar also stressed the importance of expanding professional technical training numbers to meet the rising number of TVET graduates in order for them to obtain the wages they deserve. While most TVET graduates are working, Anwar said that their average pay is roughly RM 2,000 (US $428.04), which is insufficient.
“If there are similar training programmes conducted by PETRONAS in Sarawak or the training centre in Sabah, for example, it could provide them with the expertise to obtain wages between RM3,500 (US $749.06) and RM5,000 (US $1,070.09),” he said.
