KUALA LUMPUR: Companies would be at risk of closure if the minimum wage rate were to be raised said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan.
Rahman said that the minimum wage must be implemented in stages as the employers might not able to absorb the additional operational cost if the increment were made without proper discussions.
“If the minimum wage rate is too high, companies might lay-off employees or they could possibly shut down as they cannot afford the pay the employees.
“This will only add to unemployment woes as the companies that cannot afford to pay the minimum wage. The ones who are at loss are the job seekers,” he said during the 2018 Budget winding up debate at the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday.
Rahman added that the government needs to be careful in dealing with the issue as it needs to be tackled in stages and in accordance with the current employment situation.
He also added that the opposition tried to create a perception where the government is using the RM234.5 billion allocation in the 2018 Budget to pay the salary of government officers and pensioners.
Rahman was asked by Charles Anthony Santiago (Klang-DAP) to state whether there will be an increment on the minimum wage rate by the government.
“The total salary for government officers only makes up 33.8 per cent of the 2018 Budget allocation, and pensioners, 10.5 per cent.
“The opposition tried to give the idea that the government is not able to prevent operational cost. This is untrue,” Rahman said.