Job opportunities, empowering TVET among ministry's foci this year

PUTRAJAYA, Jan 21 -- The Ministry of Human Resources is focused on providing employment opportunities for the people, expanding social security coverage to workers, and empowering Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) this year.

Human Resources Minister M. Kula Segaran, said the government in order to provide employment opportunities was negotiating with Japan to send skilled workers, for that purpose a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) is expected to be signed in March.

The ministry is also directly involved in the Malaysia@Work initiative to create better employment opportunities for youth and women while reducing dependence on low-skilled foreign workers, he said.

Kula Segaran said the ministry was also streamlining public employment services with the JobsMalaysia function being transferred under SOCSO's Employment Insurance System (SIP), where JobsMalaysia officials are retained at the Department of Labour to strengthen enforcement activities.

On the extension of the social security of workers, Kula Segaran at the ministry’s monthly meeting  here today said the Self-Employment Social Security Scheme would be extended to 20 other informal sectors such as fishermen, farmers, hawkers and artistes.

“Social Security Scheme for Housewives will be implemented to provide coverage for housewives under the Permanent Disability Scheme and Disability Scheme,” he said.

He said the No Fault Accident Scheme would be introduced to provide social security protection to workers who were involved in accidents outside working hours. 

To empower TVET, upskilling and reskilling workers, Kula Segaran said strategic cooperation between the industry and the ministry’s Manpower Department would be expanded with 100 types of agreements being signed.

Among them are the memorandum of understanding, the memorandum of agreement, smart partnership, training and production and cooperation notes, he said.

To monitor the activities of TVET students, the Manpower Department will develop a biometric system for student attendance and the initiative will be extended to all students at the accredited training centres under the Department of Skills Development, he said.

Kula Segaran, meanwhile, said the ministry would open opportunities for after office hours training from 5 pm to 11 pm at the Manpower Department’s Training Institution, aiming to train 40,000 workers.

Under Human Resources Development Berhad, Kula Segaran said the government would train 45,000 workers for certification and 650,000 workers for retraining to spur the country's economic growth. 

"The ministry also intends to exempt students from the Manpower Department’s Training Institution from paying the RM100 fee and charges for the Skill certificates,” he said.

-- BERNAMA