Media Statement: Budget 2019

Talent Corporation Malaysia welcomes the Government’s announcement for Budget 2019, which carries the theme "Credible Malaysia, Dynamic Economy, Prosperous Rakyat". 

We are especially encouraged by the Government’s timely response to the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (IR4.0) and the urgent need to address the demands of the Future of Work. The various allocations to upgrade our infrastructure for the digital economy are extremely necessary as IR4.0’s economy is set to be a highly competitive global marketplace, requiring an agile workforce powered by Internet-driven technology.

Budget 2019 clearly reflects the Government’s concern in this matter, and is therefore focused on preparing our national talent pool for the challenges of the IR4.0 workplace. Areas of concern include: 

Improving the marketability of our graduates – The double taxation deductions will hopefully provide much-needed support for the private sector to increase offerings of upskilling opportunities in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes and diploma/degree courses, as well as structured training programmes for engineering and technology students.

Increasing Malaysia's Female Labour Force Participation Rate (FLFPR) to the national target of 59% by 2020 – The Government is taking the lead in encouraging women to return to work through the setting up of childcare centres for all Government offices. The private sector is strongly encouraged to follow suit in this effort. Further to this, there is also a push for more women in leadership roles, and to increase women on boards to 30%.

Encouraging the hiring of our senior citizens who want to work – The new tax incentives for companies that hire seniors (with a salary limit of RM4,000 a month), plus the reduction of mandatory EPF contributions from 6% to 4% will also aid in bringing back our most experienced talents to the workforce. 

Finally, TalentCorp is very encouraged by the Government’s focus on ensuring the national workforce’s overall well-being. The promise to review Malaysia’s labour laws, and the implementation of the Employment Insurance System (SIP), is a clear message that employer discrimination is a key area of concern, and overall talent well-being, a key priority.  

Towards this end, TalentCorp is hopeful that more Malaysian employers in the private sector will respond positively through innovative efforts to create more supportive workplace environments, including the offering of work-life practices (family-family facilities, flexible work arrangements and work-life benefits). This will then accelerate efforts to leverage Malaysia’s strength in diversity and inclusion in our workforce, towards achieving better national productivity and economic results in the future.