Heading towards a future of high-income earners

PETALING JAYA: Employees will be empowered and the country will be driven towards a high-income nation when the government releases the Statistics Department’s Salaries and Wages Report more regularly, say experts.

Prof Geoffrey Williams said job seekers would be able to “match” their qualifications with the salaries offered by the companies before accepting the offer.

“My view on why wages are too low is because employees are not empowered.

“They don’t know the salaries being offered or the fair salaries they deserve.

“When they get the information (from these reports), they will get an idea of the wages they deserve.

“They will decline salaries that don’t match their qualifications,” said Prof Williams, who is a Malaysia University of Science and Technology economics professor.

Yesterday, Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli announced that the report, which used to be released annually, will be issued on a quarterly basis starting next month.

Such a move, he said, would enable employees to be more aware of the wages offered by the labour market.

Prof Williams welcomed the government’s plan as it could address a lot of issues linked to the cost of living.

“Many issues can be addressed which include unemployment, underemployment and low incomes.

“All these have to do with the labour market not working properly,” he said.

He said that Rafizi wanted to focus on labour market reform, “so this is 100% the right thing to do”.

Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Nivas Ragavan concurred, saying the move would enhance business competitiveness and provide the latest benchmark salaries.

“Currently, salaries and wages are being driven by the supply and demand of the market.

“The publication of a quarterly report can ensure that employees and employers can elevate each other’s competitiveness and competency.

“It also ensures employees are given reasonable salaries according to their qualifications, experience and expertise,” he added.

Nivas said that this move would encourage salaries to go up and help the country become a high-income nation.

National Human Resources of Malaysia president Zarina Ismail said while the move was lauded, prospective workers must ensure they are equipped with the right skills before demanding higher pay.

She said that industries would be willing to hire people with the right skills and pay them higher salaries.