THE labour law reforms passed recently will hurt workers in the long run, said the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC), refuting Putrajaya’s line to the contrary.

MTUC, the largest umbrella group of private sector unions, said the formation of unions will still be governed by the Industrial Relations Act 1967 and Trades Union Act 1959, thus impeding workers’ freedom of association.

Amendments to these laws were passed in the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara in recent weeks.

MTUC president Abdul Halim Mansor said workers’ ability to negotiate collective agreements (CAs) with their employers will be diluted because the legislation will result in multiple unions in one company, industry or sector.

“The Human Resources Ministry said it wanted the reforms to conform with Convention 87 (C87) of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), which gives workers freedom to form and join unions of their own choice,” he told The Malaysian Insight.

“But in reality, they only took the spirit of C87 without fully implementing its principles (that say there must be) no government intervention in the formation of unions.

“In Malaysia’s case, the government still intervenes, as the unions must fulfil the conditions in these two laws.”

The amendments were passed despite MTUC’s efforts to convince senators to repeal them.

Among others, the changes allow unions to be formed in any company or industry, and limit government interference in their creation.

Current laws allow for only one union to represent workers in a specific industry, such as transport, metal and automotive.

The amendments do away with a ban on unions in the electrical and electronic goods industry in place since the 1970s.

Wrongful dismissal cases and CA disputes will also be more speedily resolved at the industrial court.

The amendments are part of Pakatan Harapan’s efforts to reform labour laws and strengthen workers’ rights by making it easier to form and join unions.

At present, only 6% of Malaysia’s 15 million private and public sector employees are unionised. Of that rate, said labour activists, 4% are workers in government and statutory body unions.

Only 2% of the country’s 14 million private sector workers are union members, according to the Labour Law Reform Council (LLRC).

While MTUC opposes the amendments, LLRC and union group UNI-MLC back them, saying the changes will encourage union leaders to perform and attract members.

Halim said the “multiplicity” of unions in one company will end up backfiring on workers.

This is because current laws state that a union must represent 51% of workers in a given company before it can negotiate with the management on a CA that spells out workers’ wages, rights and benefits.

For a firm with 100 employees, that means a union must get 51 to join as members, said Halim.

“But if you have three unions and each has 30 workers, (the unions) cannot represent them and negotiate a CA. The three also cannot combine their memberships and choose to act as a collective.

“So, in this way, the labour law reforms actually weaken unions and workers.”

MTUC will write to ILO on the amendments, he said, and the world body will launch its own investigation into whether the changes truly benefit workers and unions. – December 27, 2019.