The Gig Workers Act 2025, gazetted on December 31, will come into force in March once all implementation mechanisms, including the consultative council, tribunal and related offices, have been finalised.
Human resources minister Datuk Seri R. Ramanan also said that membership of the gig workers’ consultative council would be announced later, with priority given to major platforms like Grab, Bernama reported. He spoke to reporters after launching the Grab Partner Campus or Kampus Rakan Grab in Petaling Jaya yesterday.
The Gig Workers Act’s aim is to protect the social security, welfare and dignity of gig workers (e-hailing, p-hailing), while extending protections comparable to those of formal employees to more than 1.2 million people in the sector.
Ramanan said that Grab had committed to raising Social Security Organisation (Perkeso) coverage for its registered gig workers to 15%, up from 10%. The company is also offering training and upskilling for 5,000 workers this year, backed by government funding through the Skills Development Fund Corporation.
On regulating gig workers’ income, Ramanan said that the national minimum wage of RM1,700 remains the baseline, while rider pay is determined by each platform. The HR minister rejected a uniform minimum fare for deliveries, saying that it would strain e-hailing platforms who are still seeking profitability, and that a balance is needed between worker welfare and business sustainability.
“Many think that if we just look after the workers, everything will be OK. That may be popular, but as I’ve told all senior ministry officials, we must have a balance,” he said.
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