KUALA LUMPUR, May 6 — Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) today reiterated the call for the civil servants’ minimum salary to be increased from RM1,200 to RM1,800.
Its president Datuk Adnan Mat said the move is in line with the 12th Malaysian Plan to achieve a high-income nation by 2025.
The last time the minimum monthly salary was increased to RM1,200 was in 2016.
“Now, in 2023, it is still RM1,200, and if added with the other allowances such as cost of living, housing allowances and fixed remuneration according to their respective grades, the civil servants earn only RM1,900, which is far from the target by 2025.
“Hence, we propose for the minimum monthly salary of civil servants to be raised to RM1,800 to enable them to bear the rising cost of goods and live more comfortably.
“However, if the government faces constraint, the salary can be raised to RM1,500 as the government has agreed to increase the minimum wage to RM1,500 for the private sector,” he said when contacted by Bernama.
On May 1, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, when addressing the 2023 Labour Day celebration in Putrajaya, said it is about time to evaluate and review the salary of civil servants, especially those in the lower grades.
Meanwhile, a civil servant, Muhammad Shafiq, 36, said a salary increase for the lower grades would be timely due to the increase in the cost of living and the RM1,200 monthly salary was inadequate.
“The government can also look at increasing the existing allowance if they do not want to increase the basic salary. For those who are single, it is enough. But, for those who are married, we are affected.
“Some lower grades civil servants do two or three part-time jobs to cover their daily expenses and necessities,” he added.
Meanwhile, Eliani Ismail, 37, a civil servant from the middle-income (M40) group, said the government must also look at the needs of the groups, which are also affected by the current economic situation.
“For example, we are not eligible to apply for KEMAS kindergarten while private nurseries are expensive. Perhaps the government can create special targeted assistance for M40 as it does for the B40,” she added.
