Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 21): The Employees Provident Fund (EPF), which is the administrator of the RM6.5 billion Malaysia@Work scheme, said today the initiative's wage and hiring incentives will be a "win-win" for employees and employers.

EPF chief executive officer Tunku Alizakri Alias said Malaysia@Work, an initiative under the Finance Ministry, "kills two birds with one stone" because it allows employees under the scheme's target groups to have a higher take-home pay, which will prepare them for the future.

For employers, Alizakri said it will be cheaper for them to hire somebody from target groups under Malaysia@Work, which is also known as #MalaysiaKerja.

Alizakri said that under Malaysia@Work, employees' statutory EPF contribution will be covered partially or fully by the scheme's wage incentive, instead of being deducted from their monthly salary.

"The good news is that our graduates and other target segments are being prepared for the future while having higher take-home pay, and for employers, it will be cheaper for them to hire somebody from the Malaysia@Work [target groups]. It kills two birds with one stone.

"This is about providing opportunities for work, bringing in employers as part of the solution," Alizakri told reporters on the sidelines of the EPF's International Social Well-Being Conference 2019 here today.

The Malaysia@Work scheme was launched at the event.

The four components of Malaysia@Work target specific groups. The Graduates@Work component focuses on employment for fresh graduates while Apprentice@Work aims to increase technical and vocational education and training participation among youths.

Meanwhile, the Women@Work component aims to attract talent among qualified women while Locals@Work is intended to promote dangerous, dirty and difficult, or 3D, jobs to Malaysians.

To illustrate, Alizakri said an eligible employee under Graduates@Work will be entitled to a wage incentive of RM500 a month while employers are entitled to a hiring incentive up to RM300 a month for each new hire.

Alizakri said these incentives will cover the employee and employer's respective monthly statutory EPF contributions that go towards the employee's EPF account.

Thereafter, if there are leftovers from the employee's RM500 wage incentive, the balance will be credited into a special "third" EPF account for employees. Alizakri said the balance can be left in the account as savings, or withdrawn whenever desired.

The Malaysia@Work incentives are valid for two years. The nationwide programme will commence in stages beginning from the second quarter of 2020.

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