PETALING JAYA: Better advocacy and awareness on workers’ rights are crucial towards achieving the goals of empowering labour unions under the National Human Resources Framework, say stakeholders.
Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) president Mohd Effendy Abdul Ghani said the framework must include not only initiatives to increase awareness among workers on their rights but also ways to strengthen the role of unions.
“Having these two measures will help build a solid base to advance the well-being and welfare of workers in the country in a more comprehensive manner,” he said when contacted yesterday.
He added that the framework must also include training and psychosocial support programmes for workers to better understand their rights under existing or new labour laws.
Mohd Effendy said that ensuring fair wages for workers for them to meet their basic needs, closing the gender income gap and inequality at the workplace due to race, religion or other factors were among pressing issues that needed to be addressed under the new policy framework.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim launched the National Human Resources Framework in conjunction with the national-level Labour Day celebrations in Putrajaya.
The framework, which comprises three cores and 11 strategies, is aimed at addressing worker-related issues such as fair compensation, job welfare, labour union movements, job mismatches and foreign labour.
The framework would serve as a guide in formulating the comprehensive National Human Resources Policy for the 13th Malaysia Plan covering the period of 2026 to 2030. UNI-Malaysia Labour Centre (UNI-MLC) president Datuk Mohamed Shafie BP Mammal lauded the move to see more unions set up in various sectors of the economy.
“We have between 16 and 18 million workers who can become union members but only about 6% are unionised. The new policy framework should aim for a unionisation rate of 50% of all workers in the country by 2030,” he said when contacted yesterday.He said unions act as a safety net for workers and it is important for employers and companies to also support the new policy framework.
“Having unions will encourage smart partnership between workers and employers so that both can contribute to the success of the company. This is because unions help the individual workers band together to engage in collective bargaining with the management,” he said.
Mohamed Shafie noted that unionised workers tend to have better wages, protection and welfare in their respective companies.
However, he said there must be regular engagement with current unions to get their feedback, including holding regular briefings with workers so that they understand the benefits and importance of joining unions.
Labour Law Reform Coalition (LLRC) co-chairperson N. Gopal Kishnam said current trade union laws should be reviewed to replace the provision allowing for multiplicity of unions in a company.“Multiplicity means that there can be more than one union in a workplace, but this doesn’t mean that it will increase the number of workers in a union. The concern is that unscrupulous employers can use this provision to get seven workers to form a union to rival an existing one.
“The industrial relations department will then take time to determine which union has the right to collectively bargain on behalf of employees, which may take years to resolve,” he said.
Gopal, who is also National Union of Transport Equipment and Allied Industries Workers (NUTEAIW) general secretary, added that the new policy framework should look at reforming the industrial courts.
Overall, he said the existence of more unions would help pave the way for a more productive workforce for the nation.
“Experience and studies show that workplaces with unions are more productive and efficient compared to those without. Because unions ensure there is industrial harmony between management and workers,” he said, adding that unionised workers have an interest in ensuring that the company remains profitable and sustainable in the long run.
