PETALING JAYA: Only 9,331 persons with disabilities (PwD) were employed in the public sector as of June 30 – just 0.64% of the total workforce – falling short of the 1% quota introduced in 1988 and reinforced under the Persons with Disabilities Act.
In a written reply to Parliament, the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry said the Public Service Department has introduced several measures to improve PwD participation in the civil service.
“Initiatives include the integrated planning framework to boost PwD employability, policy reviews to address applicant shortages, advocacy programmes such as Jelajah Organisasi Mesra OKU, disability equality training and sign language courses, as well as a partnership with Socso to promote inclusive hiring across ministries and agencies,” it said.
Within the ministry, 179 PwD are employed – 2.24% of its workforce and that of its agencies. The ministry also provides job coach services, vocational and medical rehabilitation training, and specialised workshops in Klang and Sungai Petani.
“In addition, the ministry provides a monthly allowance of RM450 under the Disabled Worker Allowance scheme for Malaysian PwD cardholders earning below RM1,700, to encourage continued employment and productivity.”
The ministry also reaffirmed its commitment to expanding the community-based rehabilitation centres. Since 2018, all centres have been registered as NGOs under the Registrar of Societies. The government has allocated RM143.1 million to support 579 centres nationwide, benefiting 20,801 PwDs.
