HR Minister Warns Employers Not to Charge Staff for Vaccination
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The government has warned employers against forcing their employees to pay for on-site Covid-19 vaccinations.
Minister of Human Resources M Saravanan said that there is no reason for employers to do and reminded them not to force their workers to pay for vaccines since the government is providing them free to everyone.
He was referring to a proposal by the Malaysia Shopping Malls Association (PPK) that employees pay a small fee of Rm50 for on-site vaccinations.
PPK's decision comes after malls decided to subsidise the cost of the exercise. All the vaccines that will be used in the exercise are free under the National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK).
The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) had denounced PPK for the proposal, saying employers should pick up all costs for the vaccination programme.
Its deputy president, Mohd Effendy Abdul Ghani, stated it was unfair to make workers pay for their vaccines if the PPK subsidised the exercise cost. He advised retail employees to report to the MTUC if they were forced to pay for their vaccination.
Vaccines are free for all.
In February 2021, National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme Coordinating Minister, Khairy Jamaluddin, stated the Cabinet had agreed to vaccinate foreigners living in the country, including documented and undocumented foreign workers, for free under PICK.
Saravanan cited that the International Labour Organisation Convention had stated that all workers must be treated equally. He said that this statement meant local workers should also be vaccinated for free.
The HR minister also said he would discuss the matter with Khairy.
The HR minister warns employers not to charge their workers for vaccination as the government is providing them for free.
Malls to host vaccination programme
On June 2, PPK said it expects retail workers to pay a reduced cost of RM50 for on-site Covid-19 vaccinations after malls agreed to subsidise the exercise cost.
In a statement, PPK said that its association members estimated the cost of providing the venue, workforce, logistics, standby ambulance service, etc., for the on-site vaccination centre would amount to RM100 to RM150 per person. It said that the cost depends on the volume and the total number of doses available each day, the total population to undergo vaccination and the time taken to complete all the doses.
It added that it decided that the malls were to subsidise the costs and be allowed to charge RM10 per dose (RM20 per participant) to defray their expenses partially and as a commitment by the registrars to mitigate reduce absenteeism.
However, PPK said Protect Health Corporation Sdn Bhd, which would provide the medical staff for the exercise, would charge an extra RM15 for participants to administer each dose (RM30 per participant), bringing the total cost per participant to RM50.
Vaccination programme for retail sector
On May 28, The Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry stated that it was working with the Covid-19 Immunisation Task Force (CITF) to execute the Economic Frontliners Vaccination Programme for the retail sector in June.
Its minister, Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi, stated that over 500,000 retail workers would benefit from the programme.
PKK lauded the government's move to target relevant economic sectors to speed up the vaccination programme.
It said that the shopping malls and all retail tenants' employees are effectively frontliners and that the vaccinated workers would protect themselves, the shoppers, and the public.
PPK said the programme had amassed an enthusiastic response from its members and retailers, with over 50 malls expressing interest to host vaccination centres across Malaysia.
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