Skimping on wages for honest labour

It’s no secret that Malaysians love cheap stuff. They will always be drawn to the nearest bargain, whether it’s a set lunch or a few office chairs from IKEA.But the majority will agree that the best things in life don’t come cheap. In fact, they’re often quite pricey.And much of the time, even if they’re reluctant to admit it, most won’t mind paying a little (or a lot) more for quality.The best of cars may clean out your bank account, but you’ll get an exhilarating feeling when driving them down the streets.Even a masterfully grilled steak may burn a hole in your food pocket, but you will enjoy every single mouthwatering chomp.

Hence, it’s a pity when most don’t feel the same way when it comes to service. It doesn’t matter whether it has to do with security, hard labour or some other form of work.These jobs, often shunned by society get paid the least, and have been so for quite a while. But for some reason, we aren’t valuing them as much as we value our possessions.We expect security guards to lay down their lives to protect our condos and homes, but are quick to balk when they lament about poor wages.

Many earning less than RM1,000


Employers want their businesses to reap maximum profits, but threaten the sack or blame the poor economy when employees ask for a raise.They wouldn’t skimp on splashing out for renovations to to their house, because doing so may result in shoddy construction, but they’d think twice before giving maids a raise, even if she have to take care of their screaming kids 24/7.Is it so difficult to be fair and pay society’s grunts for their back breaking and honest labour? Some employers say their minions need to be more productive before they deserve higher salaries.

But how much more productive can one expect them to be, when they’re not being paid overtime or even worse, not even paid on time?Just how much more work are employers expecting plantation worker to do when they are already working their fingers to the bones carrying bags of fertilizer every single day?
We can even include our policeman, who have to fight crime and keep the streets safe so we can sleep peacefully at night?Many of these people are earning less than RM1,000 a month – a pittance by today’s standards. We always want the best and most efficient service we can get.So why then are we still paying our workers peanuts?


Source : http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/2011/06/17/skimping-on-wages-for-honest-labour/