PENANG: The Human Resources Ministry, under the leadership of Minister Steven Sim, has sanctioned 124 applications for the Union Affairs Development Grant (PHEKS), allocating a total of RM1.5 million to the Northern Zone, which encompasses the states of Perak, Penang, Kedah, and Perlis.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the allocation details include 26 approved applications in Penang worth RM261,988, 21 applications in Kedah amounting to RM384,670, 15 applications in Perlis valued at RM211,569, and 52 applications in Perak receiving RM656,722. Minister Sim highlighted that a total of 1,049 PHEKS applications were submitted nationwide this year, with 551 applications approved, totaling RM7.15 million.
At the Northern Zone PHEKS 2025 assistance presentation ceremony, attended by Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, Minister Sim emphasized the importance of these funds in strengthening trade unions. This year’s government allocation for PHEKS stands at RM10 million, the highest ever, compared to RM5.8 million the previous year. Of this, RM7.15 million was directed towards approved trade unions, while RM2.85 million was set aside for outreach and community service programs.
Minister Sim also announced the ministry’s goal of reaching two million union members nationwide by the end of the year. He noted an encouraging increase in new trade unions formed last year, which was five times the number in previous years. The introduction of the MADANI Worker Card initiative has been instrumental in boosting trade union membership, currently at one million, by offering up to 30 percent discounts at over 200 companies providing essential goods and services.
The PHEKS serves as a one-off financial aid offered to registered trade unions in Malaysia via the Department of Trade Union Affairs (JHEKS) under KESUMA. The grant supports union-related activities across five designated clusters: Training and Education; Trade Union Movement Studies; Academic Writing on Labour Issues; and the purchase of IT equipment for digitalizing union management records.