KUALA LUMPUR: The Human Resources Ministry has been urged to assess the suitability of the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) to represent employers and businesses in the National Labour Advisory Council.
The suggestion came from Callistus Anthony D'Angelus, an international labour adviser with the Social Protection Contributors' Advisory Association Malaysia (Spcaam), following MEF's recent criticism of Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli's progressive wage increase plans for the private and public sectors.
He also cited MEF's diminishing relevance due to its stance on other issues over the past few decades.
D'Angelus said MEF should "read the tea leaves" and recognise the changing landscape, adding that the era of influential big businesses, wealthy individuals and corrupt politicians having a hand over the economy was fast coming to an end.
"The proposal by Rafizi to make annual salary increments mandatory in line with the country's wage mechanism overhaul is a step in the right direction.
"This is making business leaders and anyone who has benefited from the corrupt system and poor governance of previous administrations uneasy. Why would the corrupt not oppose the change when they have been robbing the country and the rakyat for so long?
"MEF must be bankrupt of ideas and arguments when they question why the economy minister is involving himself in such matters," he said in a statement.
D'Angelus emphasised that fair wages, good governance and equitable distribution of resources should be the primary concerns of any government and its economic policies.
He also highlighted the government's commitment to ensuring an equitable share of the country's wealth for all its citizens.
"For too long, businesses have been allowed to depress the wage levels of the B40 and M40 populations through ingenious mechanisms.
"The previous governments have also facilitated the suppression of many forms of basic rights for workers. The evisceration of trade union rights over the past few decades is a case in point.
"It is about time that all groups in society look at what is best for the country and its people in a holistic sense, as Rafizi is doing, and not just look at their own narrow vested interests."
Earlier this week, MEF expressed puzzlement over Rafizi's plans for a progressive wage increase in both the private and public sectors.
MEF president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman argued that wage-related policies fall under the purview of the Human Resources Ministry, not the Economy Ministry.
Syed Hussain contended that salary increments should not be obligatory as market forces should determine the labour prices.
He suggested that the government establish solid foundations and engage in comprehensive consultations with relevant stakeholders, including unions, employers, and ministries and agencies, before implementing a progressive wage model.
Last Sunday, Rafizi said he hoped the private sector would be committed to helping the government realise its policy on progressive wage increases to parry the rising cost of living.
Rafizi said the government needed a comprehensive policy involving the private and public sectors as it was now its priority to bridge the significant gap between the growth of wages and the increase in the cost of living.
Rafizi also indicated that plans for progressive wages would entail making annual salary increments mandatory.