LABOUR COST IN MALAYSIA 2016 Final Report - National Labour Cost Survey 2016 (F | Page 34

Table 3-2: Breakdown of full-time Malaysian employees by monthly basic wage
Monthly basic wage
Percentage of full-time
Malaysian employees
Less than RM 2,000 53%
RM 2,000 – RM 4,999 31%
RM 5,000 – RM 9,999 13%
RM 10,000 and above 4%
3.3.2 Cash Allowance
Approximately 60% of employers paid cash allowance to their full-time Malaysian employees. Of
the total amount spent by all employers on other monthly cash payments to these employees
(which include cash allowance, commission and OT payment), close to half was spent on cash
allowance. On average, full-time Malaysian employees received a cash allowance of RM450 per
month. The average allowances across all job categories except for managers were in the range
of RM160 – RM430 per month.
Among the establishments with expatriate / PR employees, 46% reported paying cash allowance
to these employees, at an average of RM2,000 per month. 87% of other monthly cash payments
to these employees was for cash allowance. Expatriate / PR employees in managerial and
professional roles received significantly more cash allowance compared to other job categories.
Meanwhile, foreign workers received about RM240 in monthly cash allowance, with the skilled
agriculture and craft workers receiving the highest allowance compared to all other job
categories (except for managerial, which is represented by only a small number of workers).
Note: The calculation for the above average cash allowance per employee is based on the
assumption that all full-time employees in the establishments which offered the cash allowance
received the payment.
National Labour Cost Survey 2016: Final Report
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