KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 12): The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) has urged the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to urgently support small and medium enterprises (SME) which are extremely challenged due to the Covid-19 situation.

In a statement today, MEF president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said while employers are doing their best to retain staff through various means, such as salary reduction and other cost reductions, these efforts will be futile in the long run if the business does not survive.

“Without the necessary support, employers would have no other choice but to resort to retrenchment and this would cause the entire economy to suffer,” he said.

Syed Hussain said the support needed is in addition to the government's efforts to assist employers, especially SMEs that are doing their best to remain afloat.

“While we appreciate that the banks are doing the best to support those in need of extended moratorium, there are still many companies, in particular among the SMEs, who have had their requests being rejected or delayed.

“Though we try to regain our momentum, the ‘new normal’ and new global direction continue to pose very tough challenges.

“It is critical that the employers be given the much-needed support at the bank execution level by easing the requirements and inject more liquidity into the system,” he said.