WORKERS - Increase Paid Leave and entitlement to Retrenchment Benefits NOW to respond to consequence of Covid-19?

Workers right to paid leave by reason of Movement Control Order(MCO) like what we have now during this Covid-19 pandemic. 

- Workers could not go to work because of MCO - because their workplaces were closed.

- Workers could not go to work, because their place of residence was subjected EMCO - and they were not allowed to leave the area/residence. Same problem with workers stuck in other districts/states/countries by reason of the MCO.

- Workers forced into 'quarantine' or 'self quarantine' by the authorities.

- Workers not allowed to work because they display symptoms of Covid-19.

 Currently, the labour laws do not cover this - even 'hospitalisation leave' is restricted ...

60F  Sick leave - Employment Act 1955

(bb) of sixty days in the aggregate in each calendar year if hospitalisation is necessary, as may be certified by such registered medical practitioner or medical officer:

Provided that the total number of days of paid sick leave in a calender year which an employee is entitled to under this section shall be sixty days in the aggregate;

And provided further that if an employee is certified by such registered medical practitioner or medical officer to be ill enough to need to be hospitalised but is not hospitalised for any reason whatsoever, the employee shall be deemed to be hospitalised for the purposes of this section.

Mere advice and recommendation by government, Ministry and even the Minister would not compel employers to provide paid leave in such a situation NOR worker's right to claim this paid leave...

Therefore, the Employment Act 1955, will need urgent amendments now in light of Covid-19, and this can be done soon when Parliament sits for a day on 18th May - I do not think Opposition MPs will object.

2 options 

1> Creation of a Special Paid Leave entitlement that will cover emergency situation like a pandemic, or even natural disasters like a flood, landslide, etc 

- Entitlement should be at least 60 days paid leave, thereafter maybe a further 60 days with half pay, and thereafter maybe another 60 days with a monthly allowance of  at least RM1,000, followed by unpaid leave.

2> Extend the definition of hospitalization to include if affected by MCO, other movement restrictions, self-quarantine, quarantine or measures needed during period of pandemic or threat of(or infliction) of any human to human communicable disease.

Employment Act 1955 covers only workers earning RM2,000 or less, OR those doing manual work and those who supervise manual work.

Maybe, the Act should be amended to cover ALL workers earning RM5,000 or less. 

RETRENCHMENT/TERMINATION BENEFITS  > right is there only for '..an employee who has been employed under a continuous contract of service for a period of not less than twelve months ending with the relevant date...' (EMPLOYMENT (TERMINATION AND LAY-OFF BENEFITS) REGULATIONS 1980 (REVISED 1983)

Maybe, the law ought to be amended to provide termination/retrenchment benefits for more workers - maybe for anyone who has been employed for at least 3 months (or 6 months) - whereby their entitlement should be at least 1 month's wages or at least RM1,500, whichever is lesser, for every 6 months of employment.

REMEMBER, before all workers were employed as regular employees - i.e. they will be employed until the retirement age, or unless they are terminated for serious disciplinary offences or serious breaches of contract. Today, many employers use short-term contracts, most of which are for 12 months or less > thus no need to pay out any retrenchment or lay-off benefits. Malaysian BN government allowed this...then the PH government also allowed it, so what about Muhyiddin's PN government - will it do something to help workers?

These current rates of payment of termination or lay-off benefits are dated - it was set in 1983 - that is almost 37 years ago....long overdue to be reviewed and updated. Considering the low wages of many, the rates should be made reasonable to assist the poorer low-incomed workers, maybe we should not be looking to payment of just 'ten days wages for every year of employment anymore' but something like 'at least 1 month's wages or at least RM1,500, whichever is lesser, for every 6 months of employment.' 

Remember the Employment Act just provides for minimum rights of workers - so, workers can always negotiate and agree with employers a higher rate of termination and lay-off benefits...

If the new proposed formula is adopted, 'at least 1 month's wages or at least RM1,500, whichever is lesser, for every 6 months of employment', that means if a worker has just worked for 6 months and not a year, he/she will at least get RM1,500. If he worked for more than a year, he/she gets RM3,000. If he/she worked for more than 18 months but less than a year, he/she will get at least RM4,500...as lay-off benefits.

Maybe, even a rate for those who have worked for more than 3 months but less than 6 months, they should receive at least RM1,200? 

The old rates set in 1983, is as follows - this is still the applicable law.

 6  Amount of termination or lay-off benefits payment ((EMPLOYMENT (TERMINATION AND LAY-OFF BENEFITS) REGULATIONS 1980 (REVISED 1983)

(1) Subject to the provisions of these Regulations, the amount of termination or lay-off benefits payment to which an employee is entitled in any case shall not be less than-

(a) ten days' wages for every year of employment under a continuous contract of service with the employer if he has been employed by that employer for a period of less than two years; or
(b) fifteen days' wages for every year of employment under a continuous contract of service with the employer if he has been employed by that employer for two years or more but less than five years; or
(c) twenty days' wages for every year of employment under a continuous contract of service with the employer if he has been employed by that employer for five years or more, and pro-rata as respect an incomplete year, calculated to the nearest month.

 

One day Parliamentary session on 18th May, can amend the Employment Act and relevant regulations to just deal with this most important issues - PAID LEAVE and TERMINATION/LAY-OFF BENEFITS...