Page 78 - PH Manifesto English

Promise 35: Raising the dignity of workers and creating more

quality jobs

Malaysians are among the most educated and hardworking people in

Asia. However, under the rule of UMNO and the Barisan Nasional (BN), local

workers have not been dignified, and even oppressed. It is obvious the

current government only favour big corporate companies.

UMNO and Barisan Nasional plan to bring in more than one million foreign

workers from Bangladesh, which will only serve to increase the number of

foreign workers and negatively impacts the local workers' wages. As a result,

salaries are no longer adequate to meet day to day needs of Malaysians.

It is increasingly difficult for those who have finished their education to get

quality jobs. Locals are forced to work as temporary workers or contract

workers under employers who are unscrupulous. The ruling government

prefers them to stay as nasi lemak sellers!

Today, the wages of many young people are pathetic. University graduates

for example earn an average salary of around RM2,000, which is the same

for those who graduated in 1998.

Pakatan Harapan recognises the challenges faced by of young people and

Malaysian labour force.

The Pakatan Harapan Government will strengthen the rights of workers to

establish trade unions and to select which union to join at their respective

workplaces. Employees must have right to form trade unions, and their

freedom to voluntarily join a union will be protected. Additionally, the right

to negotiate via collective bargaining will be protected and advanced.

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