Employment Regulations, 2010 (Part-time Employees)

Employment Regulations, 2010 (Part-time Employees)

The Employment (Part-Time Employees) Regulations 2010 (Regulations), which took effect on 1 October 2010, represent the first time that the government has sought to detail the entitlements applicable to part-time employees in Malaysia who are covered by the Employment Act.

The Regulations set out how legal entitlements such as overtime, public holidays, annual leave and sick leave are to be applied in relation to part-time employees subject to the Employment Act.

Unfortunately, the Regulations do not provide a great deal of flexibility for employers, and furthermore leave a number of questions unanswered.

The key features of the new Regulations are:

Casual employment: The concept of ‘casual employment’ is introduced into Malaysian legislation for the first time. A ‘casual employee’ is one engaged occasionally or on an irregular basis, as and when needed, and whose weekly working hours do not exceed 30% of the weekly working hours of a full-time employee (eg if full-timers work a 48 hour week, casuals work no more than 14.4 hours per week).

Normal hours of work: The concept of ‘normal hours of work’ for part-time employees, being ‘the hours of work as agreed in the contract of service’—or if not so agreed, then certain deeming rules apply. ‘Normal hours of work’ impact upon when overtime rates kick in on normal days, public holidays and rest days, and also affect the definition of ‘ordinary rate of pay’.

Overtime: Paid overtime applies where a part-time employee works in excess of their ‘normal hours of work’. Special loadings apply where hours exceed the normal hours of work of a full time employee, as well as for work on public holidays and rest days.

Public holidays: It is made clear that part-time employees have an entitlement to be paid for public holidays on which they do not work. Payment is to be made at an employee’s ‘ordinary rate of pay’.

Annual leave: The Regulations provide for annual leave entitlements of part-time employees, again with payment for such leave to be made at the ‘ordinary rate of pay’. The quantum of annual leave entitlements are (much like public holidays) set at a fixed amount of 6-11 days per year depending on length of service.

Sick leave: Similar to annual leave, part-time employees are entitled to sick leave of a fixed annual amount (ie 10-15 days per annum depending on length of service). Payment is to be made at the employee’s ‘ordinary rate of pay.