KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 17 — The government will lower the payments in the proposed Employment Insurance Scheme (EIS) from 0.5 per cent to 0.2 per cent, Datuk Seri Richard Riot confirmed.
The human resources minister said the reduction will be reflected in the EIS Bill that is submitted when Dewan Rakyat next convenes, confirming Malay Mail Online's previous report on the matter.
“The Cabinet subsequently agreed on Aug 11 for the revised Bill to be tabled in the Parliament meeting in October,” he said in a statement reported by The Star Online news portal.
Riot added that the reduction was decided after a meeting with stakeholders on August 10, in which it was agreed that contributions should be 0.5 per cent for employers and 0.2 per cent for workers.
The minister also continued to defend the proposed scheme, saying the government consulted employers and unions at least 78 times in addition to engaging experts from the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
Putrajaya withdrew the Bill following strong objection from workers and employers who felt that the statutory contribution proposed was too high and disproportionate to the number of retrenched workers.
It initially proposed a rate of 0.5 per cent of monthly salaries when MTUC and the Malaysian Employers Federation had agreed that a monthly contribution of RM1 from each worker, employers and the government should suffice.
The EIS would allow retrenched workers to claim a portion of their insured salary for between three and six months of unemployment as well as allowances.
