KUALA LUMPUR -- For more than a decade, Thangarani Karupiah had been making just 900 ringgit ($210) a month from her job sweeping and mopping floors at a private health care center near the capital. But since 2019, she has benefited from government rules on wage floors, and now pulls in 1,200 ringgit.
She is among 1.2 million Malaysians who will benefit again when the minimum wage goes to 1,500 ringgit next month, up from the current 1,100 ringgit or 1,200 ringgit in 57 major cities, according to the government. The new floors represent a windfall of 25% to 35% for the many workers who live paycheck to paycheck.
