Under the 2027 budget, the minimum wage will rise from RM1,700 to RM2,000 next June, but businesses with annual sales below RM50 million will be exempted.KUALA LUMPUR: An opposition MP has proposed that the government subsidise small businesses for seven months to help them pay their workers the new RM2,000 wage, instead of exempting them from the increase.
Debating the 2027 budget in the Dewan Rakyat, Ahmad Fadhli Shaari (PN-Pasir Mas) said the scheme would start with 500,000 workers at micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), with the government topping up RM300 per worker.
At RM300 a month, he estimated that the subsidy would cost up to RM150 million a month, or RM1.05 billion over seven months, excluding administrative costs.
