Gerawat: Claim of govt inaction on SLO ‘mischievous’
Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Labour, Immigration and Project Monitoring) Datuk Gerawat Gala yesterday refuted the claim by Sarawak Bank Employees Union chief executive officer Andrew Lo that the state government had made no effort to amend the Sarawak Labour Ordinance (SLO).
He said the state cabinet gave approval to amend the SLO in September 2021 which was also to ensure compliance with international labour standards.
“This allegation by Andrew Lo is both misleading and mischievous to discredit the serious effort made by the state government to get the amendment done.
“The SLO is a federal law which only applies in Sarawak, and any amendments to SLO have to be approved by Parliament and not the state legislative assembly,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Gerawat was responding to Lo’s statement on March 18 in which the latter said the Sarawak government had been consulted on amendments to the Employment Act (EA) but made no effort to amend the SLO.
Lo, who is also Labour Law Reform Coalition deputy president, claimed that workers were “up in arms” that the state government had yet to agree to the amendment of the SLO.
Gerawat said the SLO amendment incorporates amendments to the EA approved by Parliament in 2021 which came into effect in January last year in the peninsula along with provisions in the Workers Minimum Standards of Housing and Amenities Act.
He said in 2022 until early 2023, a series of engagement sessions with all stakeholders were held involving various employee and employer organisations, government ministries and agencies at both state and federal levels to get their respective input as part of the process to finalise the details of the amendments.
“As the SLO is only applicable to Sarawak and consistent with Sarawak’s right over entry of non-resident workers as provided in Article 161E(4) of the Federal Constitution and Section 65 of the Immigration Act, we had requested for a provision requiring the state’s concurrence for any future amendment to the SLO.
“This prompted a series of discussions and engagements with the Human Resource Ministry, as the provision was not agreeable to the ministry. We have recently submitted to the ministry an alternative provision requiring prior consultation with the relevant state authority for any future amendment to the SLO,” he explained.
Gerawat said such provision is in line with the spirit of the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) and intended to protect the interest of workers and industries in Sarawak, considering the different situation and conditions peculiar to Sarawak as compared to the peninsula.
“It is now for the Ministry of Human Resource and federal Attorney-General to prepare the draft amendment bill for the SLO amendment to be tabled in Parliament,” he added.
He also said the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) and their member unions have been appraised and informed about the progress of the SLO amendment during engagements with his ministry and Sarawak Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg, and that they understood the reason for the time taken to get the amendment done.
“The state government together with all relevant stakeholders have made serious and consistent effort to get the SLO amended, but the Ministry of Human Resource in Putrajaya and Parliament have the final decision.
“We hope the SLO amendment will be tabled in Parliament together with similar amendments to the Sabah Labour Ordinance in the next parliamentary sitting,” said Gerawat.
This allegation by Andrew Lo is both misleading and mischievous to discredit the serious effort made by the state government to get the amendment done.
Datuk Gerawat Gala