Tabling Of Bill To Amend Employment Insurance System Act Reflects Govt’s Commitment To Workers’ Social Protection

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 4 (Bernama) -- The tabling of the Employment Insurance System (Amendment) Bill 2025 in Parliament today reflects the government’s continued commitment to ensuring that the country’s social protection system remains inclusive, sustainable and resilient.

Union Network International–Malaysian Liaison Council (UNI-MLC) president Datuk Mohamed Shafie BP Mammal said the move also strengthens the role of the Human Resources Ministry (KESUMA) in protecting workers and helping them return to the job market faster and more effectively.

“The amendment to the bill aims to increase benefits for Social Security Organisation (PERKESO) contributors who have lost their jobs, promote workforce mobility, enhance PERKESO’s operational efficiency in implementing re-employment programmes, and strengthen the governance of the Employment Insurance System (EIS).

“Through this amendment, several improvements have been introduced, including an increase in existing benefit rates and the introduction of a new benefit, namely the Mobility Assistance Allowance (EBM), which provides contributors who have lost their jobs with protection and training support of up to RM25,000,” he said in a statement today.

Mohamed Shafie said the UNI-Malaysia Labour Centre (UNI-MLC), representing 126 unions, welcomed Human Resources Minister Steven Sim’s move to table the amendment to Act 800, saying that it would greatly benefit workers in the country.

According to him, the amendment is also in line with the Cabinet’s decision that Act 800 should be reviewed to make it more dynamic and responsive to the current needs of the labour market.

Sim tabled the bill for its first reading in the Dewan Rakyat, aimed at strengthening the country’s social protection system and expanding employment services to benefit more Malaysians.

KESUMA, in a statement, said the amendment to the bill also aims to increase benefits for PERKESO contributors, promote workforce mobility, improve PERKESO’s operational efficiency in implementing re-employment programmes, and strengthen the governance of EIS implementation.

--BERNAMA