KINDERGARTENS, depending on the region, may face difficulty paying teachers the minimum wage of RM1,500 a month, but some are trying their best not to raise fees this year, or are keeping any increase as low as possible, associations said. 

Those that have been charging parents lower fees are the ones facing more pressure to increase rates in order to pay teachers the new minimum wage that became mandatory on May 1. 

The more expensive kindergartens will likely not increase fees, as some of them have already been paying teachers more than RM1,500 a month, Perak Kindergarten Teachers Association president Lydia Looi said.

Fees range according to location and services provided, and can be as low as RM180 to RM200 per child, she told The Malaysian Insight. 

A common fee range is between RM300 and RM400 per month per child, and there are those charging RM600 to RM1,000 per child. 

“Those charging higher fees usually have more costs to cover, set higher requirements for their teachers, and will be more able to pay above the minimum wage set by the government. 

“However, there are also kindergartens in Perak that only charge RM180 to 200 per child. How can they handle the RM1,500 minimum wage?” said Looi. 

Kindergartens are also under pressure from inflation, which has impacted them even before the minimum wage took effect last month. 

Looi’s own kindergarten and nursery will be raising fees by RM30, from the previous RM800 to RM1,000 per child. 

“We provide brunch and refreshments for the children throughout the day, but the prices of items have now become too expensive. We have to adjust the cost of meals if we are to stay in operation,” she said. 

Parents have been supportive and understanding of the fee increase, Looi added. 

Despite these pressures, Looi said she personally supports the new minimum wage because higher salaries improve teachers’ quality of life. 

“If the salary is too low, teachers may work here in the morning and work other jobs in the afternoon and evening to increase their income. This affects their motivation and teaching quality. 

“The downside, however, is having to raise fees and burden parents.” 

Malaysian Kindergarten Teachers Association national president Sally Ng said the minimum salary of preschool teachers in bigger cities had already been higher than the RM1,500 minimum set by the government. 

“These are for teachers working full time.” 

Ng said preschool teachers would not be willing to work full time for just RM1,500 a month, and kindergarten operators have been paying between RM1,600 to RM1,800 to recruit full-time teachers.

“”It only took an SPM qualification to be hired as a teacher, but now the government stipulates that you must hold a professional diploma. 

“So operators have to pay higher salaries, or it will be difficult to hire people,” said Ng. 

She said it remains to be seen how the higher minimum wage will impact kindergartens set up by churches or religious groups, which often charge cheaper fees.

Persatuan Guru-guru Tadika Negeri Selangor dan Wilayah Persekutuan chairman Tracy Ong Leh Hong said member kindergartens are urged not to adjust fees to accommodate the new minimum wage for the time being.

“This is because parents signed up at the beginning of the year based on fees we had set then.

“If we suddenly adjust fees in the middle of the year now, we are concerned we’ll lose some students and parents.”

Ong admitted that operators who still proceed to raise fees cannot be stopped. 

“Some are really in a difficult situation. It is a real dilemma.

“For one, when kindergartens resumed (operations) after the economy reopened (after Covid-19 lockdowns), there were fewer students to begin with, and now on top of that, there is inflation, the new minimum wage and higher costs all round.”

Ong felt that the government should have allowed a grace period for businesses and services to adjust to the RM1,500 minimum wage. 

“Each sector operates differently.

“The new minimum wage could have been announced in the middle of this year but only take effect next year. Then kindergartens would have time to adjust fees for next year.”

She said operators are also confused as to how part-time teachers, or those working half-days, should be paid under the new minimum wage.

In Putrajaya, meanwhile, the Putrajaya Nursery and Kindergarten Operators Association said kindergartens and nurseries in the federal administrative capital are to start increasing fees by 20% to 40%. 

It cited higher operating costs and gave notice to parents to be prepared for a fee increase. – June 15, 2022.