Government issues guidelines on handling outbreak

KUALA LUMPUR: The government has issued guidelines on handling contagious outbreaks, including 2019 novel coronavirus infections (2019-nCoV).

Human Resources Minister M. Kulasegaran said the Peninsular Malaysia Labour Department had been bombarded with questions on employment issues relating to the outbreak since early this year.

“The most common questions are regarding employers preventing employees from attending work, especially those returning from countries with 2019-nCoV cases such as China, Thailand, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore,” he said in a statement.

In light of this, employers are to take the following action:

> To instruct employees to seek medical examination immediately at the expense of the employer by a registered medical practitioner or by a medical officer as stipulated under Section 60F of Employment Act 1955;

> To provide paid sick leave or hospitalisation entitlement during the quarantine period to employees receiving quarantine orders from a registered medical practitioner, regardless of the employee being quarantined at home or at hospital;

> To provide extra remuneration to employees with quarantine order exceeding sick leave or hospitalisation;

> To provide full pay to employees receiving quarantine orders from registered medical practitioners from countries with 2019-nCoV cases due to official duty or instructions from employers;

> To not prevent employees from attending work if no quarantine orders are issued by any registered medical practitioner.

However, employers are allowed to instruct any unwell employee from coming to the workplace by providing paid sick leave to the employee; and

> To not instruct employees, in any way, to utilise annual leave entitlement or take unpaid leave during the quarantine period. — Bernama