Unable to pay minimum wage, 36 Pahang nurseries forced to close

KUANTAN - Thirty-six of the 203 nurseries registered in Pahang have closed down as they were unable to pay their staff the minimum wage.

According to the president of the Pahang Association of Registered Childcare Providers, Zubaidah Husin, since the minimum wage of RM1,000 was imposed on July 1, only 25 nurseries were able to meet the requirement, but they suffered losses or reduced earnings.

Speaking at a press conference held at Kompleks Dagangan Mahkota here today, she said 142 or 69.95 per cent of nurseries registered in the state had not been able to pay the minimum wage.

Zubaidah said she was worried that more nurseries would fold up as the operators had to bear various costs when the fees charged per child was between RM350 to RM400. 

She urged authorities like Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), the Pengurusan Air Pahang Berhad (PAIP) and Telekom Malaysia to convert the status of these nurseries to social services such as mosques or houses of worship.

She added that the government could also assist by providing subsidies to the nurseries so that the fees could be maintained at the same rate. — Bernama