Monday December 24, 2012

Railwaymen want RM1,350 minimum wage

KUALA LUMPUR: The Government should set a RM1,350 minimum wage for more than 4,000 Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) non-executive workers, says the Railwaymen’s Union of Malaya (RUM) president Abdul Razak Md Hassan.

He said this would help them cope with rising costs amid difficult working conditions.

“The duties of our workers are very different compared to other civil servants. We work at various times: night, day, rain or hot weather,” he said.

Abdul Razak added that the wage request would also cover the company’s 350-odd contract staff.

He said that KTMB heads wanted to settle for the RM900 Government-set minimum wage during a November meeting over the company’s Collective Agree-ment.

RUM was, however, adamant that the figure should be set at RM1,350, claiming that in KTMB, which is wholly-owned by the Finance Ministry, allowances were less compared to other civil servants.

According to Abdul Razak, company allowances for non-executives was around RM200 and below.

He added that the lowest salary was RM742 while contract workers got RM630, without allowances.

He appealed to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak to look into their request.

RUM represents about 3,500 of KTMB’s 5,500 total staff.

KTMB officials could not be reached for comment.

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