LECTURE 7

THE GOVERNMENT AND ITS

AGENCIES
 LEARNING OBJECTIVES
• Discuss the three roles of the government in
industrial relations;

• Explain the four roles of the Ministry of Human

Resources;

• List and relate the four departments under

the Ministry of Human Resources which are
involved directly in industrial relations;
By end of this topics,
you are able to : • Classify the four functions of the Labour
Department in the Peninsula; and

• Appraise the two functions of the Industrial

Court.
• Is recognised as a tripartite system and is made up of 3 groups
and Ministry of Human Resources act as a president. His role is
to oversee the overall development of discussion. Includes,
 Employers and their organizations.
 Employees and their unions.
 Government.
Machinery for discussion in tripartite system.
 National Labor Advisory Council (NLAC) which is made
up of 14 representatives from employees, 14 from
employers and 12 from government.
 Minister of Human Resources will chair the NLAC
meetings and appoints the government
representatives.
 Other representatives are appointed after consultation
from Malaysian Employer’s Federation (MEF),
Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) and Congress
of Unions of Employees in Public and Civil Service
(CUEPACS).
 Meeting is held twice a year or when there is urgency
(eg: to approve ammendments to the law).
 THE ROLES OF THE
GOVERNMENT
• Legislator through parliament
• Administrator- through the Ministry of Human Resources
 To protect the welfare of employees-safety, health
and rights
 Promote good employer-employee relationship
through a stable and peaceful Industrial Relations
system
 To equip the unemployed with basic industrial skills
and to improve the skill level of the workforce
 To assist in maximizing country’s manpower resources
through manpower planning
• Participant / Employer- by being the largest employer in
the country. Employee in the public, private and
government sectors
 LEGISLATOR (PARLIAMENT)

Laws which are passed and are relevant to industrial

relations in Malaysia are as follows:
 Workmen Compensation Act 1952;
 Employment Act 1955;
 Trade Unions Act 1959;
 Industrial Relations Act 1967;
 Employees’ Social Security Act 1969;
 Employees Provident Fund Act 1991; and
 Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994
 SCOPE MOHR
• Encompass employee and workers state of
safety, health and welfare and human
resource matters such as training,
employment, labor rights and industrial
relations.
• It includes the PERKESO (Pertubuhan
Keselamatan Sosial), PSMB (Pembangunan
Sumber Manusia Berhad), JTM (Jabatan
Tenaga Malaysia), JKKP (Jabatan
Keselamatan dan Kesihatan Pekerja)
 MAJOR LAWS THAT GOVERN
MALAYSIA INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
• Employment Act 1955. This act stipulates regulations covering
all aspects of employment of workers. Among provisions
covered are termination, working hours, maternity and sick
leave benefits and wage payments. The provisions aim to
safeguard against exploitation by employers. The specific
coverage including: To provide minimum benefits for those
workers covered by the act. To establish certain rights for
employers. To establish certain rights for employees.
• Industrial Relations Act 1967. This act regulates the
relationships between employers and their workmen through
trade union including: To provide and encourages
harmonious relation between employers and employees.
To provide guidelines on collective bargaining between
employers and employees. To establish procedures for
settlement of trade disputes.
• Trade Unions Act 1959. This act establishes the
responsibilities of trade unions and their members
including: To provide the rules on the right of
employees to form, join and participate in any
lawful trade union activities. To provide the rules
on the right of employers to form, join and
participate in any lawful employer’s association
activities. To establish and promote legislation
affecting the interest of the trade union member.
 ESSENTIAL SECTIONS OF
EMPLOYMENT ACT 1955
Notice of termination -< 2 years -4 weeks -
-2-5 years 6 weeks -
->5 years 8 weeks

Annual Leave -1-2 years -2- -8 days

5 years -12 days -
-more than 5 years 16 days
Sick leave -< 2 years -14 days -
-2-5 years 18 days -22
->5 years days
Termination, Lay Off & -< 2 years -10 days
Retrenchment -2-5 years -15 days -
->5 years 20 days
Retirement Benefits Subject to a maximum of 5 years services
Overtime Work Subject to a maximum of 104 hours services
Working on Rest Days -Payable at twice the normal daily basic wage or payment
-Payable at twice the normal hourly rate

Maximum Hours of Work -5 consecutive hours with rest of at least 30 minutes

-Not more than 8 hours in 1 day

Maternity Leave -Maternity leave of 60 days (42-60) commencing any time within 30 days from
confinement, with the exception that she has been duly advised by the doctor
that her leave is required to begin within 14 days prior to her confinement
-After 60 days, she may apply to a total of 90 days
confinement(additional 30 days) without pay(non-pay leave) on condition till
to the 5th child
-Earnings do not exceed RM1500 per month and all manual workers
irrespective of their earnings

Public holiday -An employee shall be paid 2 days wages on any one of the 10 gazette public
holidays
-Any overtime work on any one of the chosen public holidays will be paid at 3
times normal ordinary rate of pay
 ADMINISTRATOR AND CONCILIATOR (MINISTRY OF
HUMAN RESOURCES)
• To develop a CARING ORGANISATION in industrial relations
environment towards achieving Vision 2020;
• To look after the INTERESTS OF THE WORKERS, create and maintain a
harmonious industrial relations environment based on the country’s tripartite
principle;
• To form a SHARING OF STRATEGIES through tripartite negotiations
between the government, employers, and workers.
• To INCREASE EMPLOYER AND EMPLOYEE AWARENESS of the
labour laws;
• To form a COLLECTIVE BARGAINING COMMITTEE between the
workers and the management as well as implement the wage system related
to productivity; and
• To NEGOTIATE WITH THE EMPLOYERS AND THE EMPLOYEES
through the National Labour Advisory Council regarding the drafting of
policies and labour laws.
 DEPARTMENT IN MOHR
Department of Labour Peninsular Malaysia;
Department of Labour Sabah;
Department of Labour Sarawak;
Department of Occupational Safety and Health;
Department of Industrial Relations;
Department of Trade Union Affairs;
Industrial Court; and
National Labour Advisory Council
 DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR
PENINSULAR MALAYSIA
 To look after the social and economic interests of the workers
 To assist the improvement of the country’s productivity through
 Implementing a system of administration and management of manpower
and creating a workforce that has potential and are disciplined and
productive; and
 Offering advisory services related to labour laws
 To assist in encouraging racial balance in the manpower structure of the
private sector;
 To assist in the implementation of government policies
 To assist in improving the quality of life and welfare of workers in the
plantation sector;
 To act as a catalyst in generating the concept of a caring society
 To assist in improving investments
 To monitor and keep track the labour and wage situations
 DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR SABAH

 To enforce labour laws so that the interests

and welfare of the workers.
 To minimise industrial disputes
 To protect and look after the job opportunities
of local workers through the wage control on
foreign employees.
 DEPARTMENT OF LABOUR
SARAWAK
 To ensure that the rights, interests and welfare of the
employees are always protected;
 To encourage a harmonious industrial relations
environment towards improving the nation’s economic
development;
 To ensure that job opportunities for local employees are
not threatened as the result of the foreign workers’
salaries; and
 To provide consultancy service to generate employers
and workers who are knowledgeable in labour affairs.
 DEPARTMENT OF OCCUPATIONAL
SAFETY AND HEALTH

• To amend and study from time to time through the

tripartite process, the policies, laws, code of practice
and guidelines related to safety, health and welfare
of the workers as bases for ensuring a safe and
healthy workplace;
• To ensure through enforcement activities and
incentives to obtain a safe and healthy work culture;
and
• To assist and give consultancy to further improve the
level of safety, health and welfare of the workers.
 DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL
RELATIONS
• To advise the Minister on all matters related to industrial relations and the
relevant laws including matters referred to the Industrial Court;
• To advise the employers, employees, and their unions and other
organisations on matters relating to industrial relations in general;
• To encourage the formation and development of workers’ and employers’
unions which are democratic and responsible;
• To encourage and assist in voluntary collective negotiations between the
employers’ organisations and the workers’ trade unions regarding the
terms and conditions of employment;
• To provide conciliation services when industrial disputes occur;
• To encourage the formation of voluntary collective negotiation machinery
to resolve the differences between the employer and employees;
• To have a good rapport with the employers’ and employees organisations
so as to maintain the good relationship between the employers and
employees; and
• To assist in preventing and resolving industrial disputes, lock-outs and
strikes by the use of initial preventive steps.
 DEPARTMENT OF TRADE UNION
AFFAIRS

• To coordinate and monitor affairs related to trade unions in

this country;
• To check and consider applications for the registration of
trade unions and employers’ associations which are formed
by the employees and employers;
• To ensure that the registered unions abide by the trade union
laws, the constitutions and their own union rules; and
• To advise the officers and their members about the aspects of
management, finance and the trade union laws.
 INDUSTRIAL COURT
• To set the principles and guides for labour laws in the private
sector through the decision or the award of the Court, which
as a result will become a recognise, example or guide in the
labour laws and the industrial relations system;
• To hear industrial dispute cases and give decisions or awards
regardless of whether the cases were referred by the Minister
or directly by the parties involved in the dispute; and
• To register and recognise the collective agreement entrusted
by the employer and the union.
 GOVERNMENT INVOLVEMENT
AND STRATEGY
• Employer
As an employer, the government has the power to decide policies.
• Legislator
The government has drafted various acts and rules related to labour
laws.
• Arbitrator
The government also acts as an arbitrator between the employer
and the employees. For example, if the union decides to have
collective negotiations with the employer, but the employer refuses
to acknowledge the claim within a period of seven days, therefore
the union can refer this problem to the government to take action
against the employer.
• Conciliator
If at all a dispute reaches a deadlock, the last resort is to refer the
case to the Industrial Court which will act as a conciliator.
Thank You