Part 2 of 4 parts
The state of the labour movement in Malaysia (Part 1)
The origins of the labour movement in M’sia (Part 2 of a series)
How the British suppressed the Malayan labour movement (Part 3)
The last breath of the labour movement?(Part 4)
The origins of the labour movement in M’sia
Editor’s note: This is part two of a series on the Malaysian labour movement.
FEATURE | The fact that the
Malaysian trade unions movement played a significant role in the
political, economic and sociocultural life of Malaysia has been
forgotten by many.
The labour movement did actively struggle for independence from the
British colonial powers, and contributed significantly even in the
determination of the future of Malaysia, including the drafting of the
Malaysian Constitution.
But alas, all that is in the past, and the trade unions have been
systematically weakened and isolated from involvement in the life of the
nation, first by the British colonial masters and thereafter by the
Umno-led coalition that has governed Malaysia since independence.
This weakening, nay, annihilation, of the labour movement still
continues today through the actions and omissions of a government that
seems to not just have embraced neoliberalism, but is also seen today as
being pro-business. Of late, government-owned and controlled companies
also are seen to be violating worker rights.
The future of the labour movement in Malaysia now depends on the
workers and the trade unions, who really must appreciate the history of
the Malaysian labour movement and decide whether they would want to
struggle to make the labour movement once again strong and relevant, or
just allow the slow withering away of not just the movement, but also
worker and trade union rights.
Origins of union: Protection and promotions of rights
A worker alone is weak, but workers united are strong. Workers have
always naturally come to a realisation that only together as workers
will they be able to fight and get better rights and justice at their
workplace. As such, more likely than not, there have been organised
worker solidarity actions in one form or another ever since there have
been workers in Malaysia.
For Malaysia, the advent of worker struggle would have been in the rubber plantations and the tin mines (photo),
whose labour was primarily workers of Indian and Chinese origins – a
reality then when Malay workers resisted working in such mines and
plantations, choosing rather self-employment, small businesses, farming,
fishing and the civil service. The majority of the workers in the civil
service were Malay.
The origins of organised labour in the form of worker unions in
Malaysia date back to the 1920s. Workers then, who were primarily of
Chinese and Indian origins in the private sector and Malay workers in
the civil service, formed what was known as General Labour Unions
(GLUs).
GLU membership was generally open to any worker, with no restrictions
with regards to any particular industry, sector or workplace, unlike
what we have today in Malaysia.
GLUs were generally formed in different geographical areas all around
Malaya. They attracted many workers and were strong. In the struggle
for rights, history shows that many actions were taken by GLUs,
including strikes.
The labour movement then was not restricted to merely
employer-employee matters, but also played an active role in the
political, economic and sociocultural lives of the country.
The labour movement, together with other pro-independence groups (photo - MPAJA),
was also actively involved in the struggle for independence from the
British. They were also active in the struggle against Japanese
occupation forces during World War II.
An example of a union then was the Selangor Engineering Mechanics
Association, which was registered in 1928, and was maybe one of the
first registered trade unions in Malaya.
The GLUs and many of the unions also started coming together as
coalitions and federations – and finally merged into the Pan-Malayan
General Labour Union (PMGLU) and the Singapore GLU.
British moves to weaken labour movement
The British colonial powers, worried about the growing labour
movement, decided to try to control and influence it. The British
colonial government were especially concerned about the perceived
influence that the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) and other
pro-independence groups had in the labour movement.
Methods the British employed to weaken and control the labour
movement included the enactment of laws like the Trade Union Ordinance
of 1940, and the appointment of the Trade Union Advisor.
One of the primary objects of this Trade Union Ordinance was to
stabilise the labour situation in the interest of increasing production
to sustain Britain's economy and its war efforts. It was not concerned
about worker or trade union rights.
The Malayan economy at that time was geared to support the wartime
needs of Britain. As such, labour and trade union rights, and existing
struggles for better rights had to be suppressed and subordinated to
what the British considered more important – Imperial Defence.
Malaya then was considered the “dollar arsenal” for the British
empire, and the 1940 Ordinance was enacted for the purpose of ensuring a
continued flow of revenue to the British Empire.
The stated object in the title of this 1940 Ordinance was, “An
Enactment for the Registration and Control of Trade Unions''. Its
declared purpose was the fostering of “the right kind of responsible
leadership amongst workers and at the same time to discourage or reduce
such influence as the professional agitators may have had and to reduce
the opportunities or the excuse for the activities of such persons.''
It was clearly to weaken the existing labour movement, and transform
existing trade unions and union leadership into what the British wanted.
The existing worker solidarity was to be destroyed, and a “divide and
weaken” policy was the aim. Private sector workers were to be separated
from public sector workers, and workers from different industry and
sectors were to be kept apart.
The role of unions were to be limited to simply “industrial
relations” matters – matters between workers and employers only. Unions
were no longer allowed to be involved in matters concerning the nation,
including the struggle for independence.
This new Trade Union Ordinance now required unions in Malaya to be
registered (or rather re-registered), which meant submitting an
application to the government, and receiving government approval prior
to registration. This allowed the government not to re-register some of
the stronger unions, and federation of unions across different sectors
or industries.
As such, the new law prevented government (or public sector)
employees and private sector employees from belonging to the same union.
The affiliation of unions with other classes of unions was also
prevented. Restriction was also imposed on the usage of union funds.
The registration rules were somewhat restrictive. For instance,
government employees and non-government employees could not anymore
belong to the same union or even to affiliate themselves with unions of
other classes of workers. The usage of union funds was also restricted -
it could no longer be used for a variety of other purposes, including
political purposes.
Under these rules, all the existing GLUs (or even other federations
of unions across different sectors, industry or occupation) were not
qualified for registration and therefore could no longer operate
legally.
The new Trade Union Ordinance and laws that came into force in 1946
effectively killed the GLUs, which could no longer be registered (or
re-registered) under the new law, and as such were no longer able to
operate legally. It also killed off many stronger unions.
What is of interest was that this new policy and laws did not apply
to the union movement in Britain and the UK. It only applied to
Malaysia. British unions to date are still involved in political
struggles, and even political parties like the Labour Party, in the UK.
This article was first published by Aliran here. Malaysiakini has been authorised to republish it.
Part 1: The state of the labour movement in Malaysia
Part 2: The origins of the labour movement in Malaysia
Read more at https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/402284#MDlgrVFyceD2vyMC.99
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