High time Penang urged future investors to pay RM1,300

Written by The Star Saturday, 07 May 2011 00:00

GEORGE TOWN: Penang MTUC wants the state government to take the lead in championing the minimum wage issue, which has yet to be adopted by the Federal Govern-ment.

Its secretary K. Veeriah said it was high time the Penang government impressed upon prospective investors on the need to pay a minimum RM1,300 in monthly salary.

The minimum wage proposed by MTUC comprised a basic monthly salary of RM1,000 and living allowance of RM300.

He was echoing Pantai Jerejak assemblyman Sim Tze Tzin’s statement at Wednesday’s state assembly sitting that the state government should fight for minimum wage in the industrial sector, the main thrust of the state’s economy.

Veeriah said the Penang government did not need to wait for the Federal side on the issue as the state dealt with investors directly via Invest-Penang and the Penang Development Corporation (PDC).

He urged the state government to take the lead and introduce it for the non-executives employed in state-linked companies and agencies such as the Penang Water Authority, PDC, InvestPenang, Penang Global Tou-rism and other workers under the state civil service.

Veeriah said wages in Penang continued to remain low despite reports that the state had attracted a record number of RM12.2bil worth of foreign direct investments last year.

“We were told that some factories at the Bayan Lepas Industrial Zone are still offering only RM500 in wages. This is unfair as the costs of living has gone up since 2001,” Veeriah said.

He said the prices of food and property continued to soar, but salary structures remained unattractive.