SOCSO For Housewife

Some 1.2 million housewives will be eligible for injury and accident coverage under the Social Security Organisation (Socso), said Human Resources Minister M. Kulasegaran today.

He said Putrajaya is working out a funding mechanism for the plan and where the contributions will come from, given that housewives do not have a formal employer.

“As much as possible, I want Socso to cover all Malaysians. But we want to start contributions for housewives because they play a vital role in the nation. 

“Their contributions are very important. Currently, even domestic helpers and maids have insurance, but housewives do not. So, we are working out a way so that 1.2 million women have a safety-net coverage under Socso. It will be implemented, it's just a matter of time.”

Socso now covers private sector employees, whereby employers make monthly contributions to the fund.

The plan runs parallel to a main thrust of the new Pakatan Harapan government, which is to enhance support for women workers, entrepreneurs and housewives.

Another new PH policy is the 2% Employees Provident Fund contribution for housewives that will come from their husband’s salary.

Kulasegaran added that the government is pushing for more taxi drivers to contribute to the fund, given their high exposure to accidents.

“We have about 90,000 taxi drivers in the country, but only 4,000 contribute. We want to increase this number, so that they are covered in cases of injury.”