Kuala lumpur: The Social Security Organisation (PERKESO) has been tasked with evaluating the possibility of expanding the Employment Insurance Scheme (EIS) to include gig workers, Human Resources Minister Steven Sim announced. This potential expansion aims to provide coverage for a workforce sector currently outside the scheme's purview.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Minister Sim conveyed these instructions during the winding-up session of the debate on the 2026 Supply (Budget) Bill at the policy level for the Human Resources Ministry in the Dewan Rakyat. The EIS, a social security initiative under PERKESO, is designed to support workers who have experienced job loss, but it currently does not extend to gig workers.

Sim highlighted that PERKESO's Self-Employed Social Security Scheme (Lindung Kendiri) has already seen contributions from 846,907 individuals, with 290,122 participants involved in e-hailing and p-hailing from January to October. This scheme was created to offer protection for self-employed individuals as per the Self-Employment Social Security Act 2017.

The minister emphasized the government's dedication to comprehensive labour market reforms to protect Malaysia's workforce, ensuring they benefit from balanced and competitive training opportunities.