KTMB in dire straits, workers union plea gov't help

Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) has been badly affected by the movement control order (MCO), says its workers union, claiming that the government-linked company now short of funds even to pay salaries.

Abdul Razak Md Hassan, who is president of KTMB workers union, in a statement today said the company had been suffering losses due to a decrease in its revenue since MCO was introduced in March.

This had left KTMB having to resort to paying employees' monthly salaries in two instalments.

"KTMB had been suffering from a deficit of its revenue when the number of passengers dropped by 80 percent with its passenger train services was mostly cut and thus impacted KTMB's revenue badly.

"It is surely was not something that was deliberate but due to the Covid-19 crisis which warranted for MCO to break the chain of infection.

"The implication to the drop in KTMB's revenue surely leads to another problem in terms of paying salaries, and this is the concern of the Union because without pay or delay in salary payments, or payment of only basic salaries to workers, would burden the employees.

"Due to its loss of income as an effect of the MCO, KTMB now can only afford to pay workers' salaries by breaking the payment to two times a month, and that is also done according to the current financial state of the company," he said.

The union also voices its concern over the inability of the railway company to give an early salary payout for its members to prepare for the upcoming Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration.

According to Abdul Razak (above), KTMB does not have the cash flow to do this for its workers, unlike the benefit going to be enjoyed by civil servants who would be receiving early their salary, on top of MCO special assistance and Aidilfitri special assistance payouts they get from the federal government.

"It is not that we are jealous of the civil servants, but we also do not want to miss out on this. And it was also not our wish for KTMB to be privatised, so it is unfair or unbecoming for us as employees to be victims of this privatisation," he said.

He added that the management of KTMB had applied for approval from the Finance Ministry to get the MCO special assistance for civil servants extended to its employees as well.

However, this has yet to receive a green light from the ministry, claimed Abdul Razak.

"The union is very worried about this problem's impact on KTMB workers, who are mainly low-income earners, especially when Aidilfitri is around the corner.

"Thus, on behalf of all KTMB employees, the union is pleading to the prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin and Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz to give a cash injection to KTMB so that it can cover the loss of revenues due to MCO and the ongoing conditional MCO."

The union also hoped that all the benefits which had been enjoyed by all civil servants before Aidilfitri since past 20 years can also be given to KTMB workers.  - Mkini