“It is important for a policy move like this to be done in an orderly manner to support growth and not inflationary measures,” she said during a press conference today.
“We need time to adjust, and a phased approach by the government will help.”
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The new minimum wage of RM1,500 will come into force on May 1, a 25% jump from the previous minimum wage of RM1,200 which was set in 2020.
Nor Shamsiah also stressed the importance of getting policy reforms right – especially as the economy is just emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic and dealing with increasing uncertainties due to geopolitical tensions.
She added that under current circumstances, the implementation of the new minimum wage would need to take into account the uneven recovery across industries.
She also said there should be a clear and transparent roadmap for all firms to plan accordingly on their road to recovery.
“What we must do is to minimise disruption.
“We should give affected firms time to adjust, and the phased approach as announced by the government would help.”
BNM deputy governor Shaik Abdul Rasheed Abdul Ghaffour, who also touched on the issue, said driving overall wages up went beyond adjusting the minimum wage.
Describing the minimum wage as an important policy to safeguard workers’ welfare, he said it also helped address imbalances in bargaining power between workers and their employees.
However, he pointed out it was also crucial that the revised minimum wage must go hand-in-hand with other reforms.
These reforms include incentivising firms to transition away from cost minimisation as a key competitive strategy and producing goods and services which command a premium in the market.
“The ability to attract quality investment is vital to create more value-added and high-paying jobs,” he said.
“But it’s not all about the employers. Workers also need to upskill to raise their productivity and adjust to the times, especially given the new opportunities in the digital and environmental, social and governance (ESG) space.”
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