PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) has urged the government to establish a new minimum wage of RM3,100 per month as a "living wage" benchmark, rejecting arguments against increasing the wage floor.
In a statement on Sunday (Aug 23), MTUC secretary-general Kamarul Baharin Mansor stated that the review of the minimum wage is timely and necessary to help workers cope with the rising cost of living, inflation, and increasing costs for food, housing, and transportation.
Kamarul Baharin criticised claims that a wage review should not automatically result in an increase, calling such views an insult to lower-income workers whose salaries remain stagnant at the minimum rate due to a lack of voluntary pay raises from employers.
Highlighting that the minimum wage was raised to RM1,700 in February 2025, MTUC noted that the next mandatory statutory review under the National Wages Consultative Council Act is due by February 2027. The union warned that delaying the implementation of a new rate would leave workers under severe financial pressure.
MTUC called on the government to improve the policy by mandating a structured wage scale to ensure long-term employees are not left behind. Kamarul Baharin highlighted cases of workers earning RM1,700 despite a decade of service due to the absence of a defined salary progression framework.
The union added that implementing a structured wage scale would benefit middle-income earners, reduce skills mismatches, help companies retain talent, and support national productivity growth. MTUC affirmed it will advocate strongly for workers during upcoming negotiations within the National Wages Consultative Council.
