MTUC HQ LABOUR BULLETIN Feb Mac 2014

8/12/2019 MTUC HQ LABOUR BULLETIN Feb Mac 2014

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Malaysian Trades Union Congress February-March 2014

GAJI MINIMUM-merujuk kepada laporan berita, "gaji minimum dan skimgaji baru akan meningkatkan pendapatan isi rumah Malaysia (Malay Mail,

23/2/2014), benar-benar memberikan pandangan yang tidak tepat mengenai realiti

pekerja di Malaysia. Ini jelas terhadap pekerja-pekerja dalam sektor swasta yang

merupakan majoriti pekerja di Malaysia, iaitu kira-kira 70% dari guna tenaga ini ber-

hadapan dengan keadaan tidak menentu apabila hak mereka dinafikan terhadap

kerja tetap sehinggalah bersara.

Ramai majikan menggunakan 'kontrak kerja jangka pendek', sebagai trend.

Selepas tamat tempoh kontrak, ramai dikalangan pekerja ini ditinggalkan. Mereka

sukar mendapatkan kerja baru dan sekaligus tersingkir dari hak pekerja dan kese-

jahteraan keluarga terjejas. Mereka terpaksa menanggung risiko dalam menangani

keperluan terhadap keselamatan ekonomi dan sosial yang diperlukan bagi mene-

ruskan kehidupan harian. Malah kenaikan gaji tahunan tidak wujud bagi pekerja

kontrak seperti yang dinikmati oleh pekerja tetap. MTUC gembira dengan berita

bahawa pekerja-pekerja sektor awam menerima '... kenaikan gaji tahunan tinggisebanyak RM80 hingga RM320; dansemakkan gaji dari tujuh peratus hingga 13 peratus;

dan kami berharap kerajaan Malaysia harus melakukan perkara yang sama untuk

memastikan pekerja-pekerja sektor swasta juga dapat meningkatkan pendapatan isi

rumah mereka pada kadar yang sama.

MTUC berpendapat bahawa semakkan gaji minimum yang dijadualkan

pertengahan tahun ini perlu mengambil kira kenaikan kos sara hidup beberapa ta-

hun kebelakangan. Walaupun kedua-dua pasangan isi rumah menerima gaji mini-

mum sebanyak RM900, selepas ditolak potongan berkanun, pendapatan isi rumah

adalah sekitar RM1,600. Kerajaan Malaysia mengakui bahawa isi rumah yang ber-pendapatan kurang daripada RM3,000 perlu diberikan bantuan dan telah pun

disalurkan dengan BRIM, maka adalah wajar sekiranya gaji minimumdi Malaysia di-

naikkan kepada RM1,500. MTUC menuntut supaya kerajaan memastikan pekerja di

Malaysia mempunyai pekerjaan tetap sehingga mencapai umur persaraan, yang

boleh menjamin kesejahteraan isi rumah mereka. Pekerjaan berunsurkan kontrak dan

jangka pendek perlu dihapuskan sama sekali.

Dalam keadaan hari ini, di mana setiap isi rumah dibebani dengan kewajipan pem-

bayaran hutang bulanan maka setiap pekerja perlukan kerja tetap kerana kerja

adalah satu keperluan untuk meneruskan kehidupan dan menjamin kesejahteraan

isi rumah mereka.

N.GOPAL KISHNAM, Setiausaha Agung

PERUTUSAN SETiAUSAhA


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Feb-Mac 2014 MTUC

Federal Court bars 13 from

accessing Syabas documents

The Federal Court hasdismissed an applica-tion for judicial review ofan appellate courts de-cision to bar 13 con-sumers from accessingan audit report and the

concession agreementof Syarikat Bekalan AirSelangor Sdn Bhd(Syabas).

Describing thisas retrogressive, Klang MP Charles Santiago said theruling will limit the function of Selangors Freedom ofInformation Enactment.

The Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC)and 13 others had named Water, Energy and Communi-cations minister and Syabas in the application, seeking

access to the documents which are classified secret un-der the Official Secrets Act.

I believe something is not right in the audit re-port. However, we cannot gain access to the two docu-ments now, said Charles, one of 13 appellants deemedby the court to have failed the locus standi test in beingpart of the application.

However, in its ruling delivered today by FederalCourt judge Justice Hasan Lah, the MTUC will be allowto access documents as it had made a formal request inwriting to the minister concerned.

Looking at the whole legal and factual contextof the application, especially the fact that this is a publicinterest litigation, the Federal Court is of the view thatthe MTUC has shown that it has a real and genuine in-terest in the two documents. Hence, MTUC was ad-versely affected by the ministers decision, said JusticeHasan.As for the second to the 14th appellants, the FederalCourt agreed with the majority view of the appellatecourt that their dissatisfaction with the minister's decisionin rejecting the MTUC's application did not make thempersons who were adversely affected by the minister'sdecision.

The Federal Court opines that, since the se-

cond to the 14thappellants did notmake the applica-tion to the minis-ter, they had notsatisfied the testof threshold locus

standi under Or-der 53 Rule 2(4)of the Rules of theHigh Court and assuch, are not enti-

tled to the reliefs sought.Chief Justice Arifin Zakaria led the five-member

bench also comprising Chief Judge of Malaya JusticeZulkefli Ahmad Makinuddin, and Justices Hashim Yusofand Suriyadi Halim Omar of the Federal Court.The appellants had sought disclosure of the documents

following Syabas intention to increase water tariff by 15percent.

On June 28, 2010, in a landmark rulingby thenjudicial commissioner Hadhariah Syed Ismail, the KualaLumpur High Court had decided that the minister's re-fusal to disclose the report and agreement had not beenmade in consideration of the public interest and thoseadversely affected by the proposed water tariff hike.

On Feb 25, 2011, the Court of Appeal in a ma-jority judgment overturned this decision and ruled thatthe water agreement - dated Dec 15, 2004 and involving

the federal government, Selangor government andSyabas - is confidential.

This led to the application for judicial review inthe Federal Court.Malik Imtiaz Sarwar represented the 14 appellants, sen-ior federal counsel Suzana Atan appeared for the minis-ter.Source: Malaysiakini,

Feb 12, 2014


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EP F has zero tolerance forfraud, depositors told

Feb - Mac 2014 MTUC

PETALING JAYA: The Employees Provident Fund has warneddepositors of its zero-tolerance policy against fraud, saying ithauled 30 people to court last year for making fraudulent with-drawals. EPF general manager for public relations Nik AffendiJaafar said 10 of the 30 errant depositors had been convictedwhile the remaining 20 cases were pending in court.

Two of the depositors were convicted in the last three months

of 2013 under Section 59 of the EPF Act 1991 for makingfraudulent housing withdrawals. They were fined RM800 each.The fraudulent withdrawals involved the submission of falsifieddocuments by members to facilitate the approval of withdraw-

als from their EPF account.

We have a zero-tolerance policy against fraud and will nothesitate to take legal action against members involved in anyinstances of fraud, Nik Affendi said in a statement. Under theEPF Act 1991, those found guilty of committing fraudulent with-drawals from their retirement savings fund are liable to be

jailed up to three years or fined RM10,000 or both.

Convicted members who return the money withdrawn within sixmonths from the conviction date will be allowed to apply for thesame withdrawal two years after the amount is returned. Thosewho fail to do so will lose their right to make the same with-drawal, said Nik Affendi. He added that the EPF had a strictand comprehensive system to detect and identify memberswho had made fraudulent withdrawals, even after the savingshad been successfully withdrawn. Each EPF withdrawal appli-cation and accompanying documents are thoroughly reviewed

and checked with relevant parties to ensure its authenticity, hesaid.

EPF depositors are advised to be cautious of syndicates claim-ing to offer assistance to withdraw their EPF savings for anexorbitant fee. Members should not seek assistance from athird party as the process of making EPF withdrawals is simpleand straightforward, provided that all terms and conditionshave been met, said Nik Affendi. Those wishing to make re-ports about fraudulent withdrawal attempts can contact theEPF anti-fraud hotline at 03-2616 2121 during working hours.The Star online 23 Jan 2014

PETALING JAYA: Four Malaysia Airlines(MAS) flight attendants have been sacked forallegedly participating in a union rally in Pu-

trajaya in November, says a union member.

National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia(Nufam) president Ismail Nasaruddin, whowas also sacked, said the four had received

their termination letters in February.

Nufam members took part in a peaceful rallyat the Human Resources Ministry on Nov 27.It is understood that three of the sacked fe-male attendants were on medical leave theday they came to the rally.

Ismail, who was sacked two days after therally, said the termination came after show-cause letters were issued to 30 crew mem-

bers, including union exco members, overtheir involvement in the rally. The rally hadnothing to do with MAS. We rallied for ourunion matters, Ismail stressed.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Nufamsaid MAS had suspended the unions secre-tary-general Mohd Akram Osman, a chiefsteward with the airline for 25 years, over hisinvolvement in the same rally and for issuinga union circular using the company email.

The union, however, said sending union cir-cular through the company email facility hasbeen the practice for many years and wasnever questioned by the airline. It urged MASto withdraw all show cause letters issued tothe 30 crew members and to stop union-busting activity against Nufam. We are stillwaiting for the ministry and the airline to re-spond to the matter, added Ismail.

The star Online , 28 Feb 2014

Four M AS flightattendants sacked for

taking part in rally


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Last-mi nute rush to register foreign w orkers

Feb-Mac 2014 MTUC

PUTRAJAYA: The massive nationwide crackdown onillegal foreign workers is expected to get off the groundtoday as the deadline closed on the legalisation of for-eign workers under the 6P programme.

Many employers were seen making a frenzied dash tothe 6P One-Stop Centre on the eve of the deadline de-spite a special three-month extension granted on Oct 21

for employers to finalise the necessary paperwork.

The Cabinet Committee on Foreign Workers and IllegalImmigrants chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tan SriMuhyiddin Yassin had decided on no further extensionsas the Home Ministry vowed to move in and deport theillegals starting today.

A Home Ministry official said although the special pro-gramme spanned three months, many employers did notact early. Instead, the crowd only started to pile up over

the last two weeks, . The special three-month pro-gramme was mainly to accommodate employers whoclaimed to have been cheated by employment agents toregister their illegal workers.

The latest operation to detain and deport illegal immi-grants is the second of such crackdown after the first onSept 1 last year. Indonesians were the highest numberof those detained, followed by Myanmar nationals, Bang-ladeshis and Nepalese. The plantation, construction andmanufacturing sectors were said to be the worst hit inthe operation as some 17,180 foreigner-s and 223 em-ployers were detained overall. Star online January 21, 2014

SEPANG (Jan 21, 2014): The second phase of Ops Ber-sepadu 6P went into full force on 20 Jan 2014 with thou-sands of foreigners checked for travel documents nation-wide. Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidisaid 107 operations were carried out with 6,149 foreign-ers checked of whom 1,565 were illegals.

He said among those held were 695 Indonesi-ans, 255 Bangladeshis, 157 Myanmar nationals and therest from Cambodia, Vietnam, India, Pakistan, Philip-pines, China, Nigeria and Thailand. He said those held

were sent to detention centres and will not be allowedentry into Malaysia under any circumstances as they hadabused their work permits, student and visit visas byoverstaying. Ahmad Zahid said their particulars will berecorded including the biometric data before deportation.

Biometric data is obtained to ensure they do notreturn to Malaysia under another identity. The processwill take about a week and we hope to deport them soonafter. It will be cost-free for us as the deportation will beborne by the respective countries of those detained, .He said 2,015 personnel from the Immigration Depart-

ment, police, Rela, Civil Defence Department, NationalRegistration Department and Malaysian Anti-CorruptionCommission were involved in the operation on the firstday of its launch. Ahmad Zahid said employers who canprove that their workers were wrongfully held as a resultof not producing valid travel documents should comeforward and submit the relevant papers. There may becases of employers who held on to the work permits andpassports of their foreign workers and these foreignersmay have been held when they could not produce thepapers. In such cases, the employers should come up

with the documents and hand it over to us.

This operation will go on indefinitely and we hope to nabas many illegals as we can. Often in the first week, theseillegals will go into hiding and we may not see manyheld. We are also aware that a huge number had fled thecountry prior to the operation, he said. He also warnedthat under the Immigration Act and Anti-Human Traffick-ing Act, it was an offence to employ and harbour illegalworkers. Ops Bersepadu 6P is targeted at rounding upan estimated 400,000 illegal immigrants believed to be in

the country.


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Feb-Mac 2014 MTUC

ISSUESCONCERN


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Feb-Mac 2014 MTUC

AKTIVITI KESATUANPROTONKEPADAAHLI -AHLI

Seminar kesatuan dan kesedaran kepada ahli-ahli

Beberapa orang Pekerja Proton telah menjalanai latihan yang dianjurkan oleh Pihak Nasional Diabetes Institute

(Nadi) di Ilham Resort pada Januari 2014. Latihan yang diberi adalah berkaitan Kaedah Pemeriksaan untuk

Mengawal dan Mencegah dari Diabetes.Semua Peserta dari Proton telah lulus dengan cemerlang.

Futsal bersama ahli-ahli


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Feb-Mac 2014 MTUC

Kursus dan Seminar

MTUC/SC Kursus Asas Kepimpinan & Skill Menambah keahlian dan penubuhan kesatuan Sekerja telah ber-langsung selama tiga hari dari 18-20 Feb 2014 dengan lancar. Seramai 29 peserta telah mengambil bahagiandari pelbagai sektor dan seramai tujuh peserta wanita menyertainya.

Antara topik yang dibincangkan ialah Kepimpinan dalam Era Globalisasi, halatuju Pergerakan Kesatu-an sekerja dan cabaran, pengurusan dan pentadbiran kesatuan, tanggungjawab pegawai kesatuan, perananwanita dan belia, kemahiran menambah keahlian, penubuhan, kommunikasi berkesan, tatacara dan se-bagainya.

PSIMNCC Workshop on Leadership for Young Workers 24-25 Feb 2014Kesatuan PSI Malaysia telah menganjurkan seminar dua hari untuk pemimpin muda dan belia di Petaling Jaya

Selangor. Seramai 30 peserta dengan 14 wanita telah menyertai seminar ini. Matlamat utama ialah untuk melengkapkan

Pemimpin muda menghadapi cabaran berkesatuan dan pendedahan kepada kaedah mengatasinya. Seminar ini mem

beri fokus utama kepada elemen cabaran yang bakal dihadapi oleh pemimpin muda dalam pergerakan kesatuan sekerja;

mengenalpasti hak persamaan pekerja berlainan jantina; mengenalpasti dan menyediakan diri dengan kerenah majikan

di tempat kerja dan membincangkan pengalaman pergerakan kesatuan sekerja. Sumber penceramah ialah Sdra. Ikmal

Raj, Sdra Roszely, Sdra. K.Vinothan, Sdri. Kang Bee Leng, Sdri. Rajeswari dan Sdra. Ponniah.


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Feb-Mac 2014 MTUC

INFORMASI

Wisma MTUC 10-5, Jalan USJ 9/5T, 47620 Subang Jaya, Selangor. Tel: 03-80242953 Fax:03-80243225website : www.mtuc.org.my; email:mtucgeneral @gmail.com / disediakan oleh: Sdri.R.Rajeswari, Setiausaha Penyelidikan.

disemak: Sdra. N. Gopal Kishnam Setiausaha Agung MTUC

International Womens Day2014 MTUC

Date 21-22 March 2014Venue: NUBE Training ctr

Time : 2pm-12pmRegistration : RM100

Issues on focus:

Women representation in Decision

making in Malaysia. How to change the general percep-

tion towards Women. How to change small timer business

women into entrepreneurs. How to change the mens mind set in

accepting women to be unionist.

Contact person: Sdri Nasrifah 012 2503273

Kursus dan seminar MTUC

30 March PersidanganPerwakilan Khas MTUC-TWU Petaling Jaya.

22-24 Apr il Kursus Pen-tadbiran dan PengurusanKewangan KesatuanSekerja.

20-22 Mei Kursus Pem-bangunan KepimpinanKesatuan Sekerja Peringkat Belia danBeliawanis (had umur 40 tahun).

17-19 Jun Kursus Perhub-ungan Perusahaan & Per-

jan jian Bersama

MTUC SARAWAKMTUC PUSAT

Documents

MTUC HQ LABOUR BULLETIN Feb Mac 2014