By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Aug 11: The Sarawak Labour Ordinance must be defederalised and labour law powers returned to the State under Article 76A of the Federal Constitution, as Sarawakians are best placed to decide what works for their people, from wage structures and working hours to sector-specific protections.
Kota Sentosa assemblyman Wilfred Yap said local lawmakers and industry players understand Sarawak’s challenges first-hand and can create solutions that protect workers while supporting economic growth.
He stressed that recent debates over equal minimum wage and 2 per cent Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributions for all existing migrant workers have exposed the flaws of “centralised, one-size-fits-all” policymaking from Putrajaya that fails to consider Sarawak’s economic structure, cost of living, workforce requirements and rural realities.
“Sarawak’s economy depends on balancing worker protection with sustaining industries like plantations, timber, oil and gas, and SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises).
“The reality here is not the same as in Peninsular Malaysia, and SMEs cannot always absorb sudden compliance costs from wage or EPF hikes decided without Sarawak’s input,” he said in a statement today.
Yap pointed out that policies made far away in Putrajaya, often influenced by West Malaysian political considerations, may harm the very people they are intended to protect.
The differing stances among stakeholders on equal wage and retirement protection for certain workers, he added, show how disconnected national decision-making can be from Sarawak’s principles of fairness.
“This is not about rejecting fairness or national standards, but about applying or adapting them to suit Sarawak’s realities.
“The spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 is that Sarawak’s unique circumstances should be respected and not overridden by policies crafted for vastly different conditions in the Peninsula,” he said.
“Decisions about our workforce should be made here, in Sarawak, by Sarawakians, for Sarawakians.
“The call to devolve labour law powers is not only about autonomy; it is about delivering laws that truly serve the people they are meant to protect.” — DayakDaily
