Malaysia defers minimum wages implementation

text

In the photo is the commerical distric of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Malaysian government has approved the delayed implementation by SMEs of new minimum wage standard for their foreign workers, local media reported Wednesday.

The Malaysian government approved to defer implementation by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of new minimum wage standard for their foreign workers, local media reported Wednesday.

The National Wages Consultative Council, which is responsible for the implementation of the standard, said in a statement that the employers in SMEs are permitted to defer the implementation until Dec. 31.

The employers who have already embraced the new standard would be provided with blanket approval for deductions of levy and cost of accommodation.

Employers in other sectors are also allowed to apply for deferment from the council.

The new minimum wage standard, which came into effect this year, requires employers in the Malay peninsula to pay a minimum wage of 900 ringgit (288 U.S. dollar) to their workers.

Many foreign workers have staged strikes recently to protest against the "double standard" by their employers who only apply the minimum wages to local workers.

More than 100 Nepali workers were briefly detained on Sunday for illegally planning a protest in the southern industrial town of Muar.