EMPLOYERS CAN DEDUCT LEVY FROM WAGES

KUALA LUMPUR, April 16 (Bernama) -- There is good news for employers -- they
are now re-allowed to deduct the levy from the wages of the their foreign
workers until the expiry of their present visas, Labour Director-General Ismail
Abdul Rahim said Thursday.

They had earlier been directed by the department to stop such deduction,
effective April 1, causing much uneasiness among employers as they had to bear
the cost of the levy, and this upset their budget.

The directive was therefore reversed by the Human Resources Minister Datuk
S. Subramaniam Wednesday following numerous appeals by employers, Ismail told
Bernama.

However, Ismail explained that no deduction would be allowed for new
employees registered after April 1 in line with the government's policy
requiring employers from all sectors to bear the full cost of the levy from that
cut-off date.

The rationale to get employers to bear the levy was to discourage them from
employing foreigners, he said.

Nevertheless, Ismail hoped the new decision would lessen the burden of
employers during this economic downturn.

Meanwhile, the Immigration Department has yet to implement the new levy
rates for foreign workers in the manufacturing and services sectors because it
had not been gazetted by the Home Ministry.

The new levy had been doubled for workers in these two sectors from RM1,800
to RM3,600 a year.

Immigration Director-General Mahmood Adam told Bernama that the department
expected to implement the new rates by May 1.

However, Bernama understands that the delay in gazetting the new rates was
due to the numerous protests and appeals by employers from the affected sectors.

In fact the Indian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association had threatened to
increase the price of Malaysian favourite indulgence, roti canai (a local bread)
and teh tarik (pulled tea), if the new rates were implemented.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian Employers Federation executive director Shamsuddin
Bardan welcomed the Human Resources Ministry's decision to allow employers to
deduct the levy from the workers wages, saying this was a step in the right
direction.

This decision would greatly benefit employers who had thousands of foreign
workers on their payroll.

He hoped the government would review the proposed new levy rate and maintain
the existing one at least until the economy improved.

"This will give some breathing space for employers and help them to put back
their businesses on a stronger footing," he said.
-- BERNAMA