On 12 July 2024, the Tribunal for Anti-Sexual Harassment (“Tribunal”) established under the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022 (“Act”), issued its first award in a sexual harassment case involving a male employer and a female employee. This development is a timely reminder that sexual harassment cases occurring within the workplace can still be heard by the Tribunal under the Act, and that employers owe legal duties to its employees in managing workplace sexual harassment.
The amendments to the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 (OSHA) and the repeal of the Factories and Machinery Act 1967 (FMA) will come into effect on 1 June 2024.
The amendments introduce significant and wide-ranging changes to the OSHA (which incorporate provisions of the FMA). These changes include the introduction of new duties and obligations on employers and increased penalties for non-compliance.
Effective 1 September 2023, any person who enters into a contract for service to supply employees to a principal will be entitled to certain protections and subject to obligations under the Employment Act 1955.
Recently, we have observed that the labor authorities in Peninsular Malaysia have increased efforts to monitor employers’ compliance with the local laws and practice. With the expansion of the scope of the Malaysian Employment Act (EA) effective 1 January 2023 to cover all employees in Peninsular Malaysia (and Labuan), employers are reminded of their statutory obligations, especially those under the EA.
Baker McKenzie is proud to launch a series of webinars aimed at helping employers understand current employment trends and issues in the South East Asia region. Some of the topics discussed are Alternatives to the Traditional Employment Model, and complexities of Workforce Optimization.
Baker McKenzie’s Asia Pacific Employers’ Forum took place in Singapore on Thursday, 27 April 2023. You can access a number of related resources relating to employment issues and trends.
The Anti-Sexual Harassment Act 2022 passed by the Dewan Negara on 11 August 2022. On 28 March 2023, several provisions of the Act came into effect, and it is anticipated that the rest of the Act will come into effect in stages. This is a positive development to be lauded, considering that it is the first to many steps in having an anti-sexual harassment legislation in Malaysia, to increase the prevention and awareness of sexual harassment (in addition to the sexual harassment provisions in the Employment Act).
To help you stay informed about employment law developments in Asia Pacific, Baker McKenzie has launched its latest podcast series, Need to Know: The Asia Pacific Employment Law Podcast. In this series, we will be discussing recent legislative changes, notable cases and other employment law hot topics. In our first episode, partner Trishelea Sandosam (Kuala Lumpur) and legal assistant Han Yang Quek (Kuala Lumpur) explain the key changes to Malaysia’s Employment Act that came into effect on 1 January 2023, and what employers should be doing in response to these changes.