‘Equal work deserves equal support. The Health Ministry should immediately extend these relocation benefits to all remaining contract staff without exception.’
PETALING JAYA: The Health Ministry should extend relocation benefits to contract healthcare workers as they face the same financial burden as permanent staff when transferred to new postings, said Parti Sosialis Malaysia.
Administrative reforms must be accompanied by structural fairness across the entire healthcare workforce, said its central committee member Gandipan Nantha Gopalan.
“What is the difference between a contract and a permanent healthcare worker when they are expected to deliver the same level of service? The permanent worker enjoys more perks while the contract worker gets the short end of the stick.”
He said contract healthcare workers continue to face greater financial vulnerability and job insecurity, despite being regularly transferred across states to meet public healthcare needs.
“Equal work deserves equal support. The Health Ministry should immediately extend these relocation benefits to all remaining contract staff without exception.”
The Health Ministry also announced that doctors appointed to permanent posts would be eligible to claim relocation and transfer expenses.
The party said the ministry’s operational autonomy should pave the way for the establishment of an independent Health Service Commission to oversee recruitment, career progression and remuneration within the public healthcare sector.
“To avoid becoming another top-down administrative layer, this commission must incorporate active workplace democracy, giving junior doctors, nurses and healthcare worker unions a seat at the table to ensure policies reflect ground realities rather than bureaucratic oversight,” said Gandipan.
The party also reiterated its call for Malaysia to allocate at least 5% of its GDP to public healthcare through legislation.
“Ultimately, administrative reforms require substantial fiscal commitment to permanently abolish the contract system, resolve acute under-staffing and bridge regional healthcare disparities.
“Robust public funding is necessary to stop the brain drain and prevent private capital from hollowing out our public hospitals,” said Gandipan.
Presently, the federal government’s 2026 allocation for the Health Ministry stands at RM46.5 billion, equivalent to about 2.2% of GDP.
On Monday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad announced that the Health Ministry has been granted full autonomy by the Public Service Department to independently manage and allocate its approved posts, following the department’s decision on July 9.
He said the move would enable the ministry to expedite workforce deployment, improve the distribution of healthcare personnel and address long-standing staffing shortages and administrative bottlenecks within the public healthcare system.
He also announced that 4,500 contract medical officers would be offered permanent appointments this year.
A day later, Dzulkefly announced that doctors appointed to permanent posts would be eligible to claim relocation and transfer expenses, including travel, accommodation and the transport of personal belongings.
