KUALA LUMPUR: The incentive to employers who hire vulnerable groups such as persons with disabilities, ex-prisoners, the homeless and the hardcore unemployed provides hope for the group.
The group welcomed the move to provide incentives up to RM600 per month for three months to employers to hire them, as they had been facing difficulties in securing a job due their past.
An ex-convict, who only wants to be known as N. Jega, 42, now working as a truck driver, said the government's announcement gave him and those in the same situation the confidence to change their destiny because society's stigma on people like him was difficult to erase.
"I deeply regret my past actions. The government's efforts to help ex-convicts should be commended because people like us will be motivated to change for the better outside the prison bars," said the father of one, who once served a six-month prison sentence for a drug offence.
The announcement from Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim when presenting Budget 2023 in the Dewan Rakyat on Friday regarding the incentives by Socso was also well-received by employers.
Ehsan Jaya Holdings director Datuk S.Suresh Rao, 47, said the incentive would enable employers to conduct certain courses or training for the group.
"Hiring this group can be a challenge for employers. Therefore, the incentive is expected to encourage employers to provide more job opportunities for them," he said.
On the announcement to help address youth unemployment by offering 35,000 career opportunities through government-linked companies, a private university student, Munirah Rosli said this gave confidence to graduands to embark on a career despite the current economic climate.
"Nowadays, it is not easy to get a job according to our field of study. But the announcement is a ray of hope for those venturing into the working world," she said.
The Prime Minister also announced that Socso will provide incentives to employers to hire 17,000 graduates, especially Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) graduates, with RM600 per month for three months in addition to the salary offered. — BERNAMA