Have you ever encountered an employee failing to receive their salary or earnings on schedule? What options does the employee have if anything like that occurs?
Generally, an employer has seven days following the month’s final day to pay an employee’s salary. For instance, the business must pay the employee’s wage for March by no later than April 7th. But as was already said, it is common for an employee’s salary to be paid late or not at all.
The two situations listed below are likely what employees would do if their wages weren’t paid on time:
Scenario 1: Salary of RM 5,000 or less
Under the Employment Act, any employee making RM5,000 or less may file a complaint with the Director-General of Labour. The Employment Act protects this right, and if an employee wants to come before the Director-General, their employer cannot stop them from doing so.
After you file your complaints, the Director-General will look into, consider, and resolve the issue. An overview of the inquiry process is provided below:
Prepare a statement outlining the employee’s complaint and the remedy they seek.
The Director-General will then question the employee under oath or affirmation.
Suppose the Director-General feels that the employer should investigate the complaint. In that case, he will make the necessary inquiries and summon the employer.
The employer will be required to attend. If he declines, a summons will force him to do so.
Even if the employer declines to appear for the investigation after being summoned, the Director-General will nonetheless issue a determination based on his findings.
Individuals who disregard the directive issued by the Director-General following the investigation may face penalties of up to RM10,000.00 upon conviction for non-compliance and a daily punishment of up to RM100.00 until they comply with the decision.
If someone disobeys the ruling, the Session Court may enforce the decision. Employees may still submit an appeal to the High Court if they are unhappy with the Director-General’s decision.
Alternatively, under the Industrial Relations Act, any employee who makes RM5,000 or more—or any employee—may file a grievance with the Director-General of Industrial Relations.
The following are the brief procedures:
The worker will initially make an effort to communicate with his employer and work out a resolution.
The employee may then bring the issue before the Director-General if it is not settled or resolved.
After that, the Director-General will act as needed to encourage a settlement between the employer and employee.
The Director-General will order both parties to attend a conference he presides over if they cannot resolve. At this point, information must be sent to the Director-General by both parties whenever the Director-General requests it.
If the parties are unable to reach an agreement or settlement, the Director-General may also send the case to the Minister of Human Resources.
If they are unable to resolve the dispute between the parties as well, the Minister will then send the case to the Industrial Court.
After that, the court will conduct its investigation, have a hearing, and render a decision similar to those described.
In the end, the court will decide and grant the rightful award. The award doesn’t need to be limited to the relief that the parties to the case have requested. The court’s decision on the award is final. The High Court will not hear an appeal unless it raises a legal issue rather than the award itself.
Both procedures could take a long time. It is, therefore, wise for an employee to attempt to resolve the issue amicably with their employer first. Employees should resolve conflicts with their Director-Generals only after all other options have been exhausted.
This is not legal advice. Before pursuing any legal action, we always advise speaking with a lawyer.
Have you ever encountered an employee failing to receive their salary or earnings on schedule? What options does the employee have if anything like that occurs?