KUALA LUMPUR: The government will review the minimum wage this year, taking into account the views of both employers and employees.
Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong said the review would be based on the National Wages Consultative Council Act 2011.
"For your information, this year, based on the National Wage Consultative Council Act 2011, the minimum wage rate will be reviewed.
"We will take into account the views of all parties, including employers and employees, and refer to socio-economic reports such as those from Bank Negara."
Sim said this in his winding-up speech on the royal address debate, in a response to Rodiyah Sapiee (Gabungan Parti Sarawak-Batang Sadong).
Rodiyah had raised the issue of reviewing the minimum wage, as suggested by the Bank Negara and the Employees' Provident Fund's literacy initiative, Belanjawanku.
Yesterday, the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) demanded the government to review the minimum wage rate, following the Sales and Services Tax (SST) hike.
Its secretary-general Kamarul Baharin Mansor reminded the government that the National Wages Consultative Council Act required a reassessment of the minimum wage every two years.
The last time the government reviewed the minimum wage was in May 2022, increasing it from RM1,200 to RM1,500.
Last year, the then Human Resources Minister V. Sivakumar said the review of minimum wage by the National Wage Consultation Technical Committee was 80 per cent complete.
In January, Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli said he would initiate the process of formulating policies for the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) this year, with the Progressive Wage Policy being one of the components in the five-year plan.
He had said the formulation and focus of the policies would be closely related to labour market reforms, and would be developed in collaboration with other ministries involving various components to shape the idea of labour market reforms in the country.
