KUALA LUMPUR: The Dewan Rakyat today approved the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2021, aimed at enhancing protection for workers against discrimination and further safeguarding their well-being.
In tabling the bill for its second reading, Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Awang Hashim said the Employment Act will come in force in Peninsular Malaysia and Labuan.
"The proposed amendment involves 46 clauses which include 28 amended clauses, 10 new clauses and six repealed clauses.
"The main objective of the Employment (Amendment) Bill 2021 is to increase and improve the protection and welfare of workers in the country.
"The bill also seeks to ensure that the provisions of national labour laws are in line with international labour standards as outlined by the International Labour Organisation (ILO)," he said today.
Amendments to the Act include allowing staff to apply for flexible working arrangements from their employers depending on the suitability of the working hours, working days or workplace, as well as extending employees' maternity leave from 60 to 98 days.
It also prohibits termination of female employees who are pregnant or suffering from illness arising out of her pregnancy, except on grounds relating to misconduct, wilful breach of the employment contract or closure of business.
A seven-day paid paternity leave for married male employees for each confinement, up to a total of five confinements, irrespective of the number of spouses, was also approved.
The bill...
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