MEF president Syed Hussain Syed Husman said the private sector has regularly conducted salary reviews, with many employers adjusting wages annually.

“The rate, including annual increments, is generally between 5% and 6%,” he told FMT.

He pointed out that in unionised companies, wage adjustments are made every three years.

“The triennial salary adjustment is generally about 6-10%, mostly dependent upon financial performance,” he added.

Syed Hussain’s remarks came after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on May 1 announced the civil service’s largest-ever wage hike, surpassing the previous high of 13%.

Anwar said the increase would be implemented from December this year, with more than RM10 billion set aside for this purpose.

The prime minister also challenged the private sector to emulate the government by increasing the wages of its employees.

Meanwhile, the Small and Medium Enterprises Association (Samenta) has described the government’s decision to increase public sector wages as “timely”.

Samenta president William Ng said the move does not exert pressure on private enterprises to follow suit. Rather, it serves as a positive example for them to emulate.

Ng is confident private sector wages will rise in tandem in the near future.

“The job market in Malaysia is very efficient. When salaries in one sector rise, an automatic increase takes place across all sectors,” he said.