Adnan Mat
KUCHING: The Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) will propose a new salary system to the government including making the annual increment of between RM80 and RM320 permanent for civil servants.
According to its president Adnan Mat, the current annual increment of RM80 to RM320 that civil servants is ‘interim’.
“The annual increment we are getting today is what has been agreed between Cuepacs and the government. It is a temporary agreement between us and the government.
“We will look into this issue again under the proposed new salary system which we will put forward to the government for consideration and approval. The proposed salary system will be more relevant in accordance with the current cost of living,” he said when met by reporters after presenting certificates of appreciation to frontliners in the state at the MBKS Auditorium here yesterday.
Adnan said the government had reviewed the poverty line but the civil sector’s retirement system had not been reviewed since 2002.
“It has been 18 years of no change but a review should be done every five years. Our salaries have fallen behind and now with the poverty line reviewed, it is farther behind.”
He said Cuepacs had last December requested the government to review the minimum wage of civil servants with a view to increase it from RM1,200 to RM1,800. At that time, the poverty line had not been reviewed.
“Now that the poverty line has been reviewed to RM2,208, the minimum wage for civil servants should be reviewed accordingly,” he added.