KUALA LUMPUR: The government’s financial support for Community-Based Rehabilitation Centres (PDK) is sufficient to meet minimum wage requirements for staff based on current operating hours, says Datuk Seri Dr Noraini Ahmad.
The Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister said the allocations to PDKs were calculated in accordance with the Minimum Wage Order 2024, which sets the minimum at RM1,700 a month or RM8.72 an hour.
Government funding, she added, was designed as a subsidy for staff allowances and was enough to cover the minimum wage for the 120 hours of formal monthly work expected of PDK employees.
“We also provide standardised training modules for supervisors and staff, and we encourage centres to be proactive and creative in sourcing additional funds without affecting services for trainees,” she told the Dewan Rakyat during the ministry’s 2026 Budget winding-up.
She said PDKs were not limited to federal funding and could seek other sources to upgrade facilities, equipment and programmes, while the ministry continued to support them through training and operating subsidies.
However, several MPs argued that the current allowance structure does not reflect the workload on the ground.
Bakri MP Tan Hong Pin (PH) said calculating support on an hourly basis overlooked the reality that many PDK workers work beyond official hours — conducting home visits, dealing with parents and organising activities for persons with disabilities — often without claiming overtime.
“When we raise this, we are not talking about RM8.72 an hour. What we mean is a reasonable monthly amount, preferably more than RM1,700. Their responsibilities do not end at 1pm or 6pm,” he said.
He urged the ministry to consider a monthly lump sum and be transparent if financial constraints prevented a revision now, rather than relying on hourly calculations that did not reflect unpaid work.
Temerloh MP Salamiah Mohd Nor (PN) also pressed for a review, saying volunteers — whom she described as the centres’ “driving force” — had long raised concerns about low allowances.
She said volunteers carry out demanding daily work with persons with disabilities, yet receive little in return.
“In my view, the rewards given to them are very small, and they simply do not have time to go out and seek donations,” she said, adding that some volunteers told her they were disappointed the latest Budget did not include any improvements.
