MTUC welcomes wage agreement for Indonesian domestic workers

The Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) today welcomed with caution a minimum wage of RM1,500 set for Indonesian domestic workers hired by Malaysian households under new bilateral terms signed on April 1.

MTUC secretary-general Kamarul Baharin Mansor noted that Malaysia had agreed to Indonesia's minimum wage request despite an existing exemption under the Employment Act 1955 for domestic workers.

"This agreement is rather strange because no discussions were held in Malaysia.

"However, MTUC welcomes the agreement because we have been pressuring for zero exemptions to employers on enforcement of minimum wage, including for domestic workers," said Kamarul in a statement.

Malaysiakini yesterday reported that strict rules for the protection of Indonesian domestic workers, including a minimum wage of RM1,500 will be imposed on Malaysian employers, based on a leaked full document of the memorandum of agreement signed between Putrajaya and Jakarta.

Request for a raise

Contrary to past practises, Malaysian employers will also be given three options to hire a housekeeper and family cook, child caregiver or elderly person caregiver, and one person cannot be expected to cover all three categories.

When contacted, the Indonesian Ambassador to Malaysia, Hermono, said Indonesian domestic workers already hired here and earning below RM1,500 should try and request a raise.

"Those working on existing contracts should try to request an adjustment.

"When it comes time to extend their permit, they must sign a new contract with the salary increase," he told Malaysiakini.

It is understood that most Indonesian domestic workers are currently hired at a salary lower than RM1,200 or the old minimum wage.

Enforcement of minimum wage

Meanwhile, with less than a month to the May 1 implementation date, Kamarul said MTUC is also urging the government to monitor the enforcement of the new minimum wage by employers across all sectors.

MTUC is concerned that the government does not have enough time to hold discussions with stakeholders.

"MTUC does not want a repeat of incidents in 2013 when there were many employers who failed to pay the (new) minimum wage," he said.

"Workers had to file their cases to the High Court to claim their outstanding wages.

"The government must urgently release the guidelines for implementation of the new minimum wage (RM1,500) through gazetting a Minimum Wage Order," he added. - Mkini