工找人及最低薪金制指南的谜惑与困境？Where do we go from here?

为甚麽出现‘工找人’的普遍现象呢？
最低薪金制指南的制定是否能解决困境吗？
国家应如何克服这个不利的趋势呢？

Sabah still cannot implement minimum wage policy - Masidi

News published by New Sabah Times / 23rd December, 2009
http://www.newsabahtimes.com.my/nstweb/fullstory/34852

KOTA KINABALU: Sabah cannot implement a minimum wage policy because major global corporations have become more powerful than the government, said Tourism, Culture and Environment Minister, Datuk Masidi Manjun yesterday.

He said the giant corporations are calling the shots in moving their capital from one country to another particularly countries that can offer cheaper labour force thus putting the government in a dilemma.

“The government is facing a dilemma on one hand to attract investments while the other is to provide a decent standard of living for its people,” he said when addressing the MTUC/ILO National Conference yesterday on decent work through promotion of freedom of association and collective bargaining.

He explained Malaysia is not able to ratify the convention on Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining under the International Labour Organisation (ILO) because each country has its own peculiarity and unique economic structure which must be taken into consideration and one size does not fit all.

“We need investments to create jobs and at the same time look after the rights of workers,” he said, adding that countries like Vietnam have emerged as low-cost producing economies which Malaysia is not able to compete.

He said therefore to implement the minimum wage might not be to Malaysia’s advantage and suggested a bandwidth of wage range to be worked out by sector and region to adjust to the cost of living.

In relation, the minister urged local employers to be fair in their compensation to workers and to provide decent working environment.

Employers need to train staff and move up the value chain so that they can pay (the staff) well, he added.

===================================================================

Questions:-

1. Why do we have lots of vacancies waiting to be filled, and yet no takers?

2. Is minimum wage policy help in resolving the pay dilemma and other related issues?

3. How should the government handle and resolve the dilemma and the related issues?

I think the above questions have been frequently asked, but no top leaders in the country ever succeeded to resolve it yet.

We may need a leader who has the bold political will, strong enough and completely convicted, to the cause of resolving it.

First of all, it's wrong in the first place to indefinitely rely on foreign conglomerates to 'look-after' our welfare, and decide our people's livelihood.

They are here for profits, not charity. They are shifters, not settlers.

Once profits are no longer good, after some years of operating in the country, they will shift elsewhere looking for better returns.

In order for us to survive continuously through the years ahead as a State, we must not naively think that these investors will stay forever unless local economy also progress to warrant their further investment, and bearing in mind that it may not be of the same item that they were first in.

The goal of bringing investment is mainly to foster technology-transfer and business knowledge from the process, apart from providing employment temporarily.

The motive of the government to offer very attractive packages for these foreign investments, which is a common practice, should be aimed at producing competent local entrepreneurs, industrialists, and businessmen at the end of their ventures.

These trained or 'exposed' locals will become the assets of the nation. The generally simple aim to just make a living by working for a salary would not bring us far if we have to move ahead into the future. We must learn the necessary skills and the cultures of success from these foreign investors.

It's the opportunity to learn that we want to have, and not just the salary alone.

It's of mutual benefits for both parties as they look for their business returns by investing here, we, the locals, must be gladly provide in return, and in doing so, acquiring the necessary techniques for our 'autonomy' in our quest to build our nation's economy. It's the so-called win-win arrangement by-designed.

We must increase our pay scheme at par with the strongest neighbours in order to compete for higher skilled workers and talents. We can't develop at a reasonable pace without these resources especially these 'migrated' ones are our nationals working for our neighbours.

Sometimes good pay may not be the real answer for luring these drained citizens to return; it's actually the government policy that needs to be revamped completely. We must not only have to attract these 'migrated' citizens to return but also must ensure that the new ones are not leaving for greener pastures elsewhere. The country just can not afford this trend of wastage any more. It must be stopped for the nation sake.

Salary increment must be justified by higher productivity.

People will move away once there are better offers elsewhere, even if it means migrating to a foreign country.

The keys of retaining people in the country may be summarised as follows:-
1. income - it must be sufficient enough to meet all the basic needs, and more;
2. Good living environment;
3. dynamic, progressive, just, fair, and stable government with good governance.

Sabah can not, and shoul not, compete with Semenanjung, Vietnam, Philippines, or Indonesnia on manufacturing based on imported raw materials and labours.

It has to capitalize on its own unique strengths like its climate, land, geographical location in the region, natural resources etc. in order to have the edge to survive.

It should not overly rely on foreign labours to sustain its activities. It should adopt technology and mobilizing its educated people to carve out a niche in the world economy instead of presently importing unskilled labours that caused further decline in its competitiveness.

We (Sabah) ought to be in the down-stream manufacturing / processing business of our own raw materials, with ideally, our own labour forces only.

Our labour forces can be paid higher than imported labours with the adoption of better equipped skills, technology or mechanisation.

In realising this, our education system must seriously revamp in order to meet with these new challenges. The younger generation must be well educated and trained, to be more creative and responsible workers. They must be progressively adaptive in meeting all the new requirements, either known or unknown ahead.

Unfortunately, the current status of our 'educated' resources are terribly disappointing, and far from acceptable level.

Minister of education, are you listening?

Apart from education, we must not forget the status of our infrastructures like transportation system, broadband and telecommunications, elctricity power supply..............