It’s been 2 years ever since we started working from home and for a lot of us, adopting WFH has improved productivity and allowed us to have more flexible timing in completing our work.
However, the president of the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) has said that employees who work from home should take a pay cut as they are no longer going to the office.
“Actually, there are lots of opinions on whether it is okay for those who work from home to be paid less. Many companies say that if there is a cut, it should 10-12%.”
He elaborated and said that this is because of certain factors where we see that some companies do offer travelling allowances and if employees want to WFH then they should not receive the allowance, reported ASTRO AWANI.
“However, the final decision rests with the employee. If they want to work from home then they take the pay cut, if they go to the office then they will get the allowance.”
This piece of news did not sit well with Muar MP Syed Saddiq as he believes that there are many other costs incurred when an employee works from home and that their pay should not be touched.
“Employees who WFH take money out of their pockets to work for the company as well. Electric & wifi bills and they often work till night.”
Many netizens agree with the MP and say that companies are actually saving more when their employees work from home.
“When we WFH, our utility bills double but the company’s utility bills drop significantly. This is not including employees who don’t have WiFi at home and will need to buy data just to work. The salary is not even adjusted to the inflation rate yet you still want to cut it?”
Some questioned why we are not moving forward but instead, regressing.
A netizen says that there are double standards in play.
“So most directors and bosses who work while on vacation should get their pay cuts too right? There is no work in cafes, golf courses, hotels as work is only in the office right?”
With the increase in the price of goods, a pay cut would definitely affect a lot of workers and how many times can we take out our EPF?
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments.