The Public Service Department (PSD) has announced that its plan to end the "critical service incentive payment" to doctors, nurses, engineers and other professionals joining the civil service starting Jan 1 has now been put on hold.

In a statement issued this morning, PSD director-general Mohd Khairul Adib Abdul Rahman (above) said the department wished to announce that the decision had been suspended pending a reevaluation with stakeholders and a cabinet decision on the matter.

"Related to this decision, the abolition of the critical service incentive for new appointments involving 33 critical schemes as described in a PSD circular has also been suspended," he said.

The move, which was first announced in the circular, dated Dec 20, 2019 met with widespread condemnation, with critics saying that the allowance cut was likely to contribute towards talent leaving the public sector.

The special allowance was intended to attract and retain skilled workers in professions deemed vital to the country’s development.

Under the original announcement, those already receiving the allowance would continue getting it, including contract workers whose contracts have been renewed, but new employees would not qualify.

The critical allowance was one of nine allowances the government planned to stop paying for, including entertainment allowances to private secretaries, and English proficiency incentives.