PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) has called for the government's intervention to help the 958 Grade 21 part-time employees of the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) whose contracts were terminated last Dec 31.

The congress is also appealing for the employees concerned, who are mostly clerical staff from the B40 group and had been working with IRB for up to 18 years, to be absorbed back to their positions.

MTUC secretary-general Kamarul Baharin Mansor said the employees concerned had been informed In June 2022 on the expiry of their contract, but had thought that the contracts would be renewed at the end of the year.

"The workers are informed every year on the expiry of their contract, but after Dec 31, their contracts were always renewed. So they assume that it would be the same for this year. that their contract will be renewed again this year," he told reporters after handing over a letter from MTUC seeking for the reinstatement of the workers concerned to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim here.

The letter was received by Anwar's Senior Political Secretary Datuk Seri Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin, who said the matter would be brought to Anwar's attention.

The IRB, in a statement last Dec 29, stated that digital transformation was one of the factors for it to continue with the practice of employing monthly and daily contract officers from Jan 1 this year.

It said the transformation enabled most tasks and work functions at IRB to be automated, further increasing the cost of efficiency in administering the country's taxation system.

-- BERNAMA