Labour Day protesters want minimum wage hike, end to contract system

 

The annual May Day rally in Kuala Lumpur yesterday evening saw a 150-strong crowd march for workers’ rights.

While not matching its pre-pandemic turnout, the protest was still a lively event with many chanting and holding placards displaying their demands.

According to organisers, this year’s march was held ahead of May Day to avoid clashing with the upcoming Hari Raya celebrations set to happen early next month.

The event yesterday was supposed to start at 5pm but was delayed to allow those stuck in city traffic to attend.

Prior to the march, speeches were read out by representatives from various groups, pertaining to issues such as the unpaid school cleaners from Sabak Bernam and the gig economy.

At around 6.15pm - the crowd, mostly clad in red and black, marched for about 20 minutes from Central Market towards the Kuala Lumpur And Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH).

There were concerns about the rallygoers observing Covid-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs), however, the event - which was observed by the police and Suhakam - went off without a hitch.

The walk to KLSCAH was a peaceful affair, with many looking on from inside shops as attendees were heard chanting “long live workers”.

The main theme of the march, organised by Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), was the call for greater social security in the age of Covid-19.

The rally’s declaration listed 26 demands.

Among them, an increased minimum wage to RM1,500 and the abolishment of the contract system - which was said to leave many workers lacking job security.

‘No job security, employers will exploit’

Speaking to reporters, Jaringan Pekerja Kontrak Kerajaan (JPKK) coordinator Kohila Yanasekaran said the Covid-19 pandemic has left many in a vulnerable economic state.

“Because of Covid-19, many workers have been affected by job losses.

“When this happens, they become informal workers. There is no social security - no Employees Provident Fund (EPF), no Social Security Organisation (Socso).

“People can be thrown out of work very easily. There is no job security. If there’s no job security, there is no food security, an increase in poverty, and employers will exploit them,” said Kohila.

She noted that while many members of the public have taken out money from their EPF accounts, it is not the right approach to tackle job losses caused by the pandemic and recent natural disasters such as flooding.

On the contract system, Kohila said workers had more to lose from the current system.

Referring to some workers who spoke at the rally, she noted many of these individuals had worked for a long time but are still employed via the contract system.

Kamila, a school cleaner working in Sabak Bernam, called for greater protection for school cleaners.

"In conjunction with Labour Day, I ask for the government to look out for the welfare of cleaners working in the private sector.

"For example, if there is a contractor (managing the cleaners), pick contractors who will do their job and are honest.

"Moving forward, our schools have many buildings so we want more workers to be hired than the amount we have now," she said, noting that more cleaners were hired in the past.

She told reporters that her job is much harder due to the smaller workforce and is not helped by the group's unpaid wages which is still a sore point for them.

Long-term solutions

JPKK coordinator Sivaranjani Manickam pointed out that apart from what Kamila was describing, there should also be long term solutions to the issue.

"In the long run, we don't want this contract system because this is a permanent job at schools.

"So long as schools exist, school cleaners are necessary. Why do we need a contract? These workers need to be made permanent staff.

"So, (one of) this year's demands is to abolish the contract system at any government premises and absorb these workers as permanent staff," she said.

As many of these workers are from the B40 (bottom 40 percent of income earners) group, absorbing them as permanent staff would provide great relief, Sivaranjani added.

On March 29, school cleaners from Sabak Bernam received assurance in the form of a handwritten letter “signed by” the Education Ministry that those who have been unpaid since November would receive their backpay on April 1.

While the workers were paid three months' worth of overdue wages, they still have not received their wages for March.

This group has spent months of campaigning and holding protests over the unpaid wages. - Mkini