In 2024, the Malaysian government intends to implement substantial labour market reforms with the goal of lowering the nation’s dependency on foreign workers.
The action is a result of the government’s recent introduction of a revised white paper outlining its progressive pay strategy. The majority of the important structural choices have already been made by the ministry, according to Malaysia’s Minister of Economic Affairs, Rafizi Ramli, with an emphasis on execution in 2024.
“Labour sector reform will be the main area of attention in 2024. The government has to modernise in order to lessen its reliance on foreign workers, he added. “It is imperative to develop a timeline and strategically place all systems.”
Rafizi acknowledged the difficulties at hand but stressed how crucial it was to create an all-encompassing employer support framework in order to make the reforms easier to execute. Furthermore, he emphasised that the ministry’s goal is to reduce implementation risks and difficulties by conducting impartial research and evaluations.
“I’m not sure if this can happen with a single directive. In order for us to initiate it, we must create a support network,” he clarified. “If we wish to keep going forward, I hope that the entire ecosystem will take part in the reform process.”
The government also took note of the worries expressed by MSMEs (micro, small, and medium-sized businesses) about how the progressive pay policy may affect their business operations. Before putting the policy into effect, Rafizi gave his word that the ministry will take care of these issues in order to avoid any job losses and company closures.
We are aware that over 80% of employers fall into the MSMEs category, so if we push wage increases on workers, we may have to deal with job losses and the potential closure of these tiny businesses. Therefore, the ministry will address each of these problems as soon as the policy is put into effect,” he stated, according to the New Straits Times.
