KUALA LUMPUR – The onus should be on employers to decide which of their staff members need to work from home under the conditional movement control order (CMCO) as they would know the situation on the ground best.
Selangor and Federal Territories Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) said this should be regardless of whether the individuals are at managerial and supervisory levels.
The government on Tuesday had announced that employees at managerial and supervisory levels in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Sabah would be allowed to work from home starting today.
Division secretary Mohd Faisal Husin said the decision to enforce work-from-home rules only for managers and supervisors is a discrimination towards those in other positions, and smacks of double standard.
“The nett effect of this policy appears to be that the health and lives of managers and supervisors are more important than that of other staff. If it is aimed at reducing the chances of Covid-19 spreading, there should not be this form of discrimination in the first place.
“This policy has many glaring weaknesses, and it is obvious that the government had failed to consult the stakeholders such as the employers’ groups and workers' representatives before coming up with the regulation.
“Such decisions are obviously best left to the owners and operators of businesses to decide which worker is best to work in the office or from home. If the intended aim is to reduce the number of people at workplaces, whether they are managers or not,” he said in a statement today.
This is in response to the government’s decision for management and supervisory staff to work from home during the CMCO period.
International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali had announced yesterday that a maximum of only 10% of those in these positions would be allowed to work on-site, for a maximum of four hours, three days a week.
Faisal said the announcement was both vague and difficult to follow, generating much confusion among workers.
“The recent directives from the National Security Council (NSC) have been constantly changing, so much so that many are not clear as to the actual intentions of the government.
“It is time the NSC and cabinet get their act together. They must stick to one set of SOPs.” – The Vibes, October 22, 2020
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