KUALA LUMPUR, July 14 — Three months ahead of Budget 2026, Dzulkefly Ahmad announced that doctors in public service will not get an on-call allowance increase allocated in the previous budget.
The health minister attributed this to the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) inability to implement the Waktu Bekerja Berlainan (WBB) shift system due to insufficient medical officers.
“Based on our observations, Waktu Bekerja Berlainan (WBB) is not able to be implemented due to insufficient medical workers in many health care facilities. Therefore, the MOH finds that the Elaun Tugasan Atas Panggilan (ETAP) [increase] cannot be given at this time,” Dzulkefly said in a statement last Saturday.
“I have instructed the Health director-general to continue fighting and working towards a solution to realise the provision of ETAP so that it can be beneficial to eligible health care workers.
“The MOH is aware of the complexities of the issue, especially in balancing between the agenda of workers’ welfare and the government’s financial burden. Discussions with stakeholders will be continued, including with the relevant clinical specialty heads.”
Dzulkefly’s remarks about the government’s broken promise of raising doctors’ on-call allowance were buried in the middle of a press statement about a slew of issues in the health care system titled “Kementerian Besar, Amanah Lebih Berat: Komitmen KKM Menjawab dan Menyelesaikan” (Translation: A Big Ministry Comes With Bigger Responsibilities: MOH’s Commitment to Providing Answers and Solutions).
“Between ‘shape up or ship out’, I choose to shape up, not through slogans but work. I believe that fixing the system is more important than building perceptions in leading the MOH,” wrote the health minister in his statement in response to a newspaper editor’s views published on July 7.
Contract doctors’ group Hartal Doktor Kontrak (HDK) cited remarks by Dzulkefly’s former press secretary, Nik Azmi Fathil, who posted on X last November 9 that the ETAP increase of RM55 to RM65 was a “done deal” because it had been announced in Budget 2025.
“Promises remain promises,” HDK posted on Facebook, suggesting that “perhaps it’s time for YB to resign.”
Dzulkefly said last April 26 that doctors would receive their on-call allowance increase by June, adding that a committee chaired by his clinical advisor, Dr Abu Bakar Suleiman, was in the “final phase of negotiation” on the issue.
Medical groups have been fighting for higher on-call allowance for years, with the Malaysian Medical Association (MMA) proposing a 178 per cent increase in weekend on-call claims to RM25 per hour from the current RM9.16 hourly rate.
As it turns out, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s administration couldn’t even raise the on-call allowance to RM11.50 per hour for all medical officers in public service, much less RM25 per hour or higher.
Last January, the Cabinet axed the unpopular WBB pilot project that was tied to an on-call allowance increment for medical officers and specialist doctors performing active calls on weekends or public holidays only in departments or units that implement WBB.
Medical officers and specialist doctors under WBB would receive RM275 per shift and RM315 per shift respectively for weekend active calls, RM55 and RM65 higher than the current RM220 and RM250 per shift respectively.
Non-WBB weekend active calls were not eligible for the allowance increment, while 18-hour WBB shifts on weekdays (3pm-9am) were not eligible for ETAP at all because these were considered to be part of one’s 45-hour work week.
Last October, Anwar, who is also the finance minister, announced an RM55 to RM65 increase in the on-call allowance for doctors and dentists in public service during the tabling of Budget 2025.
