Allow frontline civil servants to accumulate annual leave over next five years - Cuepacs

KUALA LUMPUR: The Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) hopes the government will allow civil servants working as frontliners to accumulate the rest of their leave this year over the next five years.

Its president Adnan Mat said this was because these civil servants were not able to use their annual leave as they had to work.

“The current rule is that civil servants can only accumulate the remaining leave within three years and the leave will be forfeited if not taken after the third year.

“So for this year most civil servant frontliners or those who had to work during the COVID-19 pandemic, could not take their annual leave therefore we request the remaining leave period to be extended over five years,” he said in a press conference at his office at Menara Cuepacs here, yesterday.

Adnan said the matter should be considered following the recent increase in COVID-19 cases which demanded that the civil servants involved be on duty.

“We appeal that the leave of civil servants working as frontliners be given special consideration, only for those who have been instructed to work or return to work due to COVID-19,” he said.

Adnan also said Cuepacs called on Bank Negara Malaysia to intervene in ensuring the ‘wakalah’ rate of the Public Sector Home Financing Board (LPPSA) is reduced.

He said the reduction was necessary as the existing rate was seen as a burden on civil servants.

“Cuepacs is of the opinion that the existing ‘wakalah’ fee of 25 per cent is still too high to be borne by civil servants.

“We request that it be reduced to 12.5 per cent in order to reduce the burden on civil servants,” he said.

-- BERNAMA