A NEW Bill seeks to protect workers involved in accidents unrelated to their jobs and which happen outside their working hours.
Human Resources Minister Steven Sim (pic), who tabled the Employees’ Social Security (Amendment) Bill 2025 for the first reading, said the proposed amendment to the Employees’ Social Security Act 1969 seeks to introduce a new social security scheme, namely Non-Employment Accident Injury Scheme, which extends social security protection to employees from accidents which occur outside working hours and not related to their employment.
The proposed amendment will include a subsection on “non-employment injury which refers to a personal injury to the employee caused by accident not arising out of and in the course of his employment in an industry to which this Act applies and shall not include any circumstance specified in section 96B”.
Under Clause 13, which seeks to insert a new section to provide “that an insured person is not entitled to any benefit in respect of disablement as a result of non-employment injury caused by an accident occurred outside of Malaysia”.
The amendment would also allow an insured person to claim for medical benefits if he suffers from a non-employment injury.
Additionally, an insured person who dies as a result of non-employment injury shall also be entitled to funeral benefit and funeral benefit payment will be provided for his dependants.
Similarly, the amendment will also apply for disablement claims caused by non-work injury.
Another addition to the amendment is to empower the medical board to review any decision and assessments of the extent of the disablement caused by the non-employment injury.
The new Bill will include changes where insured persons or their dependants will be prevented from claiming duplicate benefits for the same injury, invalidity or death under multiple schemes administered by the Social Security Organisation (PERKESO).
Those eligible for more than one benefit will be required to choose one and the decision will be final.
New Sections 96B and 96C will further define cases that do not qualify as non-employment injuries, including those categorised as self-employment or domestic injuries, or cases arising from illness and reaffirm that duplicate benefit claims across related Acts are prohibited.
Sim previously announced that the 24-hour social security protection, under amendments to the Employees’ Social Security Act 1969, is crucial to ensure workers under PERKESO remain protected beyond official working hours, in line with the realities of modern and flexible work arrangements.
The amendment, he added, will guarantee continued protection for workers outside office hours, reflecting the evolving nature of today’s workplace.
