RM50 increase in minimum wage not enough

THE government should listen to the advice of the National Wage Consultative Council and not almost entirely, to the employers' advice.
Employers would generally want to maximise their profits by minimise wage increases, so please don't be unduly influenced by them. The majority of the voters are workers who deserve more priority attention.
> The Pakatan Harapan government must honour its manifesto and election promises to increase minimum wages to RM1,500 per month in five years, by immediately raising wages – not just by RM50 per month, but by at least a further RM150 per month. Then as the economy grows, the government could implement more wage increases.
> Meanwhile, the government should spend more on improving Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) teaching and training programmes, to raise productivity for working individuals as well as students.  
> Income inequality is widening and could cause social unrest if not addressed in time. So the government should give greater priority to raising wages urgently and more substantially, to overcome this serious problem of worsening income inequality.
> The government should also ensure that the rakyat gain from Malaysia's still strong economic fundamentals and good economic growth and not favour mostly the wealthy.
We must ask ourselves whether our policy planners should aim to benefit the poor much more than the already blessed rich.
Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam
Corporate Adviser
Sunway Group