Ahmad Zahid Calls On Employers To Hire PwD Using Gov't Incentives

BAGAN DATUK, Jan 11 (Bernama) -- Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has urged employers, including those from abroad, to utilise government incentives under the Career Fund by hiring persons with disabilities (PwD).

He said this is because the productivity of this group is on par with that of non-disabled workers.

"Please show concern for these PwD employees. This initiative is a commendable effort because they (PwD workers) are only physically different, but their productivity is equal to, if not greater than, that of regular employees," he said here today.

He said this in his speech at the MYFutureJobs Bagan Datuk Career Carnival 2025, which was also attended by Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Mohamad and Social Security Organisation (Socso) chief executive officer Datuk Seri Dr Mohammed Azman Aziz Mohammed.

Under Budget 2025, employers who hire PwD and former convicts under the Daya Kerjaya 3.0 initiative will receive incentives of RM600 per month for three months under Socso’s supervision. 

On Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Ahmad Zahid, who is also the National TVET Council chairman, said the number of TVET trainees last year increased to 280,000, compared to 130,000 in 2023.

Meanwhile, Abdul Rahman, in his speech, said statistics showed a significant reduction in the country’s job mismatch rate, from 40.5 per cent in 2022 to 18.2 per cent in 2023.

"This success reflects the ongoing efforts of the Human Resources Ministry through Socso in ensuring job offerings align with the qualifications and skills of job seekers," he said.

He added that as of Dec 27 last year, there were 43,595 job vacancies offering salaries of RM10,000 and above, and 1.2 million job seekers had secured employment between 2020 and Dec 27, 2024. 

The MYFutureJobs Bagan Datuk Career Carnival, which runs until tomorrow, offers more than 5,400 job opportunities with salaries ranging from RM1,700 to RM5,000 and features over 20 companies from various sectors.

-- BERNAMA