PETALING JAYA: Besides initiatives to increase participation of workers in labour unions, workers groups also urged the government to strengthen the enforcement of labour laws to further uphold the rights of workers.
Union Network International-Malaysia Labour Centre (UNIMLC) president Datuk Mohamed Shafie BP Mamal said there are still some employers who avoided paying the new minimum wage of RM1,700, which came into force on Feb 1.
He said there are still complaints about employers not paying the minimum wage, not issuing offer letters or failing to pay workers’ contributions to the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and Social Security Organisation (PERKESO).
“I urge the government to ensure stricter enforcement of labour laws to uphold the rights of workers,” he said when contacted.
Mohamed Shafie also said that with wider participation of workers in labour unions, there will be greater bargaining power in terms of incomes.
He pointed out that awareness on unions now is not as significant as in the past. He said this could be due to more government interventions in ensuring the welfare of workers.
“Back then, workers, through unions, would have to fight for their rights, such as decent wages.
“However, nowadays the government has acknowledged that the quality of life has changed and there is a pressing need for better wages and working conditions,” added Mohamed Shafie, whose association has over 450,000 members across 120 labour unions nationwide.
Congress of Union of Employees in the Public and Civil Services Malaysia (Cuepacs) secretary- general Abdul Rahman Mohd Nordin agreed that workers’ bargaining power will increase in tandem with higher unionisation.
“Unions were the ones who would fight for the rights of workers, including the increase in incomes,” he said.
He acknowledged that awareness of the benefits of being a unionised worker is lower now compared to decades ago.
For this, Abdul Rahman lauded the government’s recent announcement of the Madani Workers’ Card initiative or Kad Pekerja Madani, which is expected to benefit a million union members nationwide.
He said the initiative will not only protect the welfare of workers but also encourage participation in unions.
“The initiative will ensure that workers feel appreciated and encourage them to actively participate in union activities,” he added.
Mohamed Shafie Mohamed Shafie concurred, saying that the initiative will not only help reduce the financial burden of low-income workers but also boost the rate of union memberships.
“This is a good move because while it could help reduce the financial burdens of workers, it could also attract workers to join unions,” he said.
Members of all labour unions will be able to enjoy up to 30% discounts on about 100 selected services and products through the Madani Workers’ Card.
The discounts are expected to benefit about one million union members nationwide.
According to the Trade Union Affairs Department, there are slightly over one million unionised workers across public, private and statutory bodies nationwide as of 2023.
Meanwhile, the Statistics Department’s Labour Force survey showed that in 2023, the total labour force was 16.37 million people.
This makes the total number of unionised workers in Malaysia only roughly 6% of the total labour force.
Khazanah Research Institute in 2022 showed that a higher density of unionisation would translate to better bargaining power for workers.
The think-tank had drawn a comparison between Malaysia and Belgium, where half of its labour force is unionised.
The high rate of unionisation of Belgian workers showed that they had 96% better bargaining power compared to Malaysia’s labour force of just 0.4%.
Mohd Shafie urged employers to treat labour unions as partners instead of “enemies”.
“If this mentality is ingrained among bosses, I believe that we, as a nation, can achieve greater heights,” he said.
