More initiatives to be introduced to address unemployment rates, Tengku Zafrul says

KUALA SELANGOR - The “Jamin Kerja Keluarga Malaysia 2022” carnival held in stages nationwide ensures that youths are able to secure the right job opportunities from various sectors, overcoming unemployment issues facing the nation.

Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz also introduced several current and upcoming incentives to cope with unemployment in the country.

Among them was to add more satellite centres in the MYFutureJobs Satellite Centres initiative (a one-stop centre, offering career services such as profiling, career counselling and employability activities for jobseekers, especially those who reside in rural areas).

"Through Budget 2023, the government plans to develop 13 more MYFutureJobs Satellite Centres in UTC across the country.

"These satellite centres are important to bridge the gap between the federal government and the small population in rural areas at the grassroots levels.

"Socso (Social Security Organisation), was also given the mandate to work with the Human Resources Development Corporation (HRD Corp) to establish a national placement centre in the Klang Valley as a centre for Malaysians to find work," he said after officiating the "Jamin Kerja Keluarga Malaysia 2022" carnival at Plaza 1, here.

Commenting further, he said the government through the Finance Ministry, Human Resources Ministry and HRD Corp had established Upskill Malaysia.

"This is a "single window" platform for providing information about resources for training and skill development programmes through various ministries and agencies.

"It also includes online learning or e-training by HRD Corp which offers online courses for free to Malaysians from reputable international and local trainers," he said.

In addition to the implementation of the RM1,500 minimum wage, Tengku Zafrul said the government also took a holistic approach by supporting various types of jobs and sectors.

"This includes those involved in the gig economy where the government will bear 80 per cent of Socso contributions for gig economy workers," he said.

Tengku Zafrul also encouraged job seekers, especially those in east Malaysia (Sabah, Sarawak) and east-coast states (Kelantan, Terengganu) to make use of the mobility assistance for workers.

The government has also proposed that RM500 will be given to those who secure jobs outside their state of residence, while RM1,000 will be given to those who need to make a long-distance move.

"Participating employers also have the chance to receive incentives from the JaminKerja-Employment Incentive Programme," he said.