Civil servants union unhappy with budget's failure to address low salaries
Cuepacs says salaries don't commensurate with living costs, and that many of the initiatives were put in place by previous governments.
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The country's main civil service union Cuepacs says the 2023 budget presented by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim fails to tackle the high living costs faced by government servants.
The union's president Adnan Mat also questioned the government's commitment to reevaluating the new public service remuneration system in order to increase salaries.
"The salary and wage factor is a critical matter at this point as the current rate is seen as no longer relevant to the increase in living costs which have risen so sharply, especially involving basic necessities such as food, health and housing," he said in a statement.
Adnan said there had been many reviews of the civil service remuneration system by previous governments "but without any good news".
Tabling the 2023 budget with a total allocation of RM386.14 billion today, Anwar announced among others a special payment of RM700 for civil servants in Grade 56 and below, as well as RM350 for retirees, to be paid in conjunction with the Hari Raya Aidilfitri celebration in April.
Cuepacs, which brings together more than 100 civil service unions with some 1.2 million members, said the initiatives involving civil servants were already put in place by the previous governments.
But it said a move to cut individual tax rates would not have any meaningful effect on disposable income, especially for civil servants, and that a new remuneration system was needed to replace the two-decade-old system currently in place.
"The excess of up to RM1,300 in disposable income through tax reductions does not reflect the real situation of the people," said Adnan.
He said the budget today also failed to address the home ownership woes of civil servants, adding that the government should bring back the affordable home purchase schemes previously implemented.
"Civil servants are not asking for free housing because we are willing to buy homes, but with our current salary rates, the prices offered by developers are ridiculous," he said.
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