PUTRAJAYA, May 1 — All civil servants need to increase productivity and efficiency in delivering services to the people, in line with the announcement of salary increase, said Public Service Department director-general Datuk Seri Wan Ahmad Dahlan Abdul Aziz.

He said that the announcement needs to be followed by the delivery of services which meet the needs of, and satisfy, the people.

“Personally, this is something very good for civil servants, due to the concern of the government led by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim. We have had no revision (of salary) for more than 12 years,” he told Bernama after attending the 2024 Labour Day celebration today.

Anwar, in his speech in conjunction with the celebration today, announced a salary increase for civil servants, at a rate of more than 13 per cent, starting this December, the highest in history.

Echoing his sentiment is the Congress of Union of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) president Datuk Adnan Mat who said that efficient and good service to the people will have a positive effect on the government.

“Civil servants are facilitators for the people and the economic sector, so they need to carry out their duties with full trust and responsibility,” he said.

Adnan said if civil servants are of high quality, highly capable and meet customer expectations, it can reduce complaints and grievances of the people against government sector services.

“There is no meaning (of this announcement) if it is only enjoyed by members of the public service; instead it needs to be enjoyed by the people, through efficient service delivery,” he said.

Meanwhile, the National Union of Teaching Profession (NUTP) president Aminuddin Awang described it as an announcement capable of providing positive momentum to educators, in producing knowledgeable and virtuous Malaysians.

“NUTP hopes that this announcement will inspire educators, who are 1/3 of the total number of civil servants in this country. We need to continue to educate the nation’s children, for the sake of this country,” he said.

The Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) director-general Datuk Nor Hisham Mohammad said the salary increase, of more than 13 per cent, greatly motivates civil servants, especially firefighters.

He added that the announcement had a high impact on increasing productivity and gave new challenges to JBPM to provide better services to all. — Bernama