Guidelines for private sector to allow Muslim staff to perform prayers

BATU GAJAH: The Human Resources Ministry has released guidelines for private sector employers which would allow Muslim staff members to spend at least 20 minutes daily to perform their prayers.

The guidelines, published by the Labour Department and Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (Jakim), also recommend that Muslim staff be given an hour-and-a-half off for Friday prayers.

Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Mahfuz Omar (pic) said the guidelines were produced after considering the views and opinions of muftis at a meeting of Syariah experts.

"The initiative to produce the guidelines began in 2017 when the department received complaints from workers who found it impossible to perform their prayers because they weren't given time off.

"Although such cases were rare, it could potentially create an unhealthy working environment if left unchecked.

"So we thought it best to take proper measures to restore harmony in the workplace by publishing these guidelines so that employers would give their staff some time off for them to perform their prayers," he said.

Mahfuz said this when launching the guidelines at the Camfill Malaysia Sdn Bhd plant here.

Last year, the department received about 4,468 complaints, 0.3% of which had to do with Muslim workers not being given enough time to perform their prayers on a workday.

Mahfuz said the guidelines were in line with Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution which states that Islam is the official religion of the country and therefore Muslims should be allowed to perform their prayers at the appropriate times.

He said other than giving employees time off to pray, employers also must ensure that clean prayer rooms, complete with prayer mats and a place for ablutions, were available for men and women.

The "kiblat" (the direction that should be faced when a Muslim prays) should also be clearly marked once identified by the state mufti.

Mahfuz also reminded workers not to abuse the time off, and use it for its intended purpose.

He also said the ministry plans to publish the guidelines for Muslim female staff members.

"This is aimed at clearing any confusion between employers and workers on the appropriate dress code in any given field, especially in the private sectors," he said.