A trade unionist has proposed that funding for the Lindung 24 Jam scheme should be borne by employers instead of workers.
PETALING JAYA: A trade unionist has proposed that funding for the Lindung 24 Jam scheme should be borne by employers instead of workers.
Former workers’ representative on the Social Security Organisation (Socso) Appellate Board K. Veeriah said following the Cabinet’s decision to make it voluntary for Malaysian workers, an alternative funding model should be in place.
“I believe that the contribution ought to be fully borne by employers. This is also the position taken by labour reform groups,” he told theSun. Veeriah said while concerns had been raised over employees having to shoulder the full 0.75% contribution, making the scheme voluntary was not the solution.
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Instead, the government should retain mandatory participation while adopting a fairer funding model, he said.
“In any case, I also believe that Socso has sufficient funds to cover the scheme.”
Responding to whether workers would find the Lindung 24 Jam scheme redundant if they already had private insurance, Veeriah said such an assumption does not reflect the reality faced by most employees.
“I am inclined to believe that the vast majority of workers are not in position to pay for private insurance and very few employers cover their workers with insurance,” he said.
Latest data from the Statistics Department showed that the median monthly wage of formal sector employees stood at RM3,167 as of December 2025.
While acknowledging that more than two million workers earned less than RM2,000 a month, Veeriah said social security should remain a shared responsibility between the government, employers and workers, rather than placing the entire burden on employees.
The Lindung 24 Jam (Non-Employment Injury Scheme) came into force on June 1, 2026, extending Socso protection to employees who sustain injury or are involved in accidents outside working hours.
Under the original scheme, employees were required to contribute 0.75% of their monthly wages.
The rate was scheduled to increase in phases over subsequent years. On July 8, the Cabinet announced that participation would no longer be mandatory for Malaysian workers but voluntary with immediate effect, after considering public feedback over the additional payroll deduction.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Sri R. Ramanan later clarified that participation remains mandatory for foreign workers under existing legal provisions.
Veeriah also questioned the decision to make the scheme voluntary for Malaysian workers while retaining mandatory participation for foreign workers, calling it discriminatory.
He said the Lindung 24 Jam plan was a much awaited and welcomed initiative that would have addressed the need for social security protection for workers incapacitated by injuries sustained outside working hours.
“I have seen one too many cases of workers’ injury claims being rejected by Socso because the injuries were not considered employment injuries.”
Veeriah said social security safety nets are essential to ensuring workers are adequately protected when misfortune such as illness or injury occurs, and that it was the primary obligation of both the government and employers to devise, implement and finance such safety nets.
“Just like contributions to the Employees Provident Fund and Socso’s Invalidity Pension and Employment Injury schemes, contributions to the Lindung 24 Jam scheme should also be made mandatory for all employees,” he said.
