PUTRAJAYA: Amendments to the Employment Act 1955 will come into force on Jan 1, as previously planned, said Human Resources Minister V. Sivakumar.

"The enforcement of the amendments to the Act must proceed as planned as it was already passed in Parliament, with most of the amendments being based on the International Labour Organisation (ILO) convention," he told a press conference today.

There were calls from various parties for the implementation to be postponed to 2024.

On Aug 26, then Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan announced the deferment of the amended Employment Act 1955 from Sept 1, 2022, to Jan 1, 2023.

The Employment (Amendment) Act 2022 was passed during the Parliament sitting in March.

The key amendments include the extension of maternity leave allocations from 60 days to 98 days, reduced weekly working hours from 48 to 45 hours, and a seven-day paternity leave for married male employees.

Sivakumar said in terms of foreign workers under Section 60K (4) of the Act, the employers must obtain approval from the director-general of the Department of Labour Peninsular Malaysia (JTKSM) to hire foreign labours.

"The reason why the employers need approval from the JTKSM director-general is due to the previous applications that were rejected following the employers' failure to comply with the labour law.

"As such Section 60K (4) of the Act will act as an initial screening, which is effective in ensuring prospective employers employing foreign workers in...

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