PETALING JAYA: About 75% of companies in Malaysia are expected to benefit from the RM1,200 payout per employee under the expanded wage subsidy programme.
Associated Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Malaysia (ACCCIM) SMEs committee chairman Koong Lin Loong(pic) said the majority of companies in Malaysia, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs), employ fewer than 76 people and would be entitled to this subsidy.
In the Prihatin SME+ stimulus package announcement on Monday, the government increased the allocation for the programme to RM13.8bil from RM5.9bil previously.
Under the programme, companies with more than 200 workers will receive a subsidy of RM600 per employee and the maximum number of workers eligible for the subsidy is 200 workers.
For companies with 76 to 200 workers, the company will receive a subsidy of RM800 per employee and companies with up to 75 workers will receive a subsidy of RM1,200 per employee.
“The main objective of the wage subsidy is to help employers retain employees. It should also help the bigger players.
“That was why we asked for the programme to be expanded to all companies, but we need to help the smaller ones more.
“And if you look at most SMEs in Malaysia, they employ fewer than 76 people.
“So actually, about 75% of companies in Malaysia qualify for this RM1,200 per employee, ” he said.
Koong also clarified that companies with up to 75 workers did not need to prove that there was a 50% drop in sales since January to apply for this subsidy.
Only those with 76 workers and above will need to provide supporting documents to show that sales have declined by at least 50% since January.
“People think that every company needs to prove the 50% drop in sales.
“Actually if you look at the criteria, companies that have up to 75 employees don’t need to prove that sales dropped by more than 50%.
“They are exempted, ” he said.
He added that the criteria to prove a 50% or more drop in sales was imposed on companies with 76 workers and above, as they are likely bigger players and would have slightly more reserves to last a little longer.
“If you are a bigger company and you have more than 200 employees, that is a total of RM120,000 that you can get in a month.
“And this programme is for three months. That is quite a bit.
“I think companies are receptive of this. I think that this is actually something significant from the government to help our businesses.
“We have to be fair to the government. Although it can’t subsidise 75% of wages like Singapore because of limited resources, this up-to-75-people criteria covers most companies already, ” said Koong.
Source : https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2020/04/10/companies-subsidy-boon