Recent Amendments to the Trade Union Act 1959 & Collective Bargaining

📅 Date: Wednesday, 16 April 2025
⏰ Time: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Breakfast starts at 8:30 AM)
💵 Price: RM97.00 (Includes materials, breakfast, lunch & teatime)

🚨Non-HRDF Claimable

📍 Venue: Malaysia HR Forum Academy, Level 12, Menara PKNS, Jalan Yong Shook Lin, 46050, Petaling Jaya, Selangor

The Trade Unions (Amendment) Act 2023 was passed by the Dewan Rakyat on 10th Oct 2023, the Dewan Negara on 28th Nov 2023, received the Royal Assent on 27th Dec 2023 and gazetted on 12th Jan 2024. It came into effect on 15th Sept 2024 which was the date appointed by the Minister of Human Resources (MHR) by notification in the Gazette.  

As the TU (Amendment) Act 2023 had already come into force, there are significant changes to the trade union recognition landscape, allowing multiplicity of unions in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah or Sarawak catering for employees in Managerial, Executive, Confidential, Security or Non-Executive (bargainable) capacities. The definition of a “trade union” has been amended to allow trade unions to be established across trade, occupation or industry giving rise to “multiplicity” of unions within an organisation. Recognition claims are no longer governed by competence of the union, but rather, by the union’s scope of membership, which must be in accordance with the rules and constitution of the trade union. Where such a union has majority support of employees in their respective capacity, the DG of IR shall decide that recognition shall be accorded to the union concerned – Sec. 9 (5) IRAA 2020.  

Since the recent amendments to the TUA 1959 and IRA 1967, where there are more than one union in an organisation, the union having the majority of support for a category of workmen (or class of workmen) shall have “sole bargaining rights” under Sec. 12A IRA 1967 to negotiate the CA. One other significant change pertains to the lowered threshold requirement for a trade union to organise a strike. Firstly, the union must obtain at least more than one-half of the votes by secret ballot in favour of the strike of at least sixty percentum of its total number of members who are entitled to vote, in favour of the proposed strike. Previously, the requirement for a union to organise a strike was to obtain the consent via secret ballot of at least two-thirds of the total number of members entitled to vote.  

The one-day seminar highlights the provisions of the IRAA 2020 which have since been operational w.e.f. 1st Jan 2021, and the provisions of the said IR amendments on union recognition claims, sole bargaining rights and CA deadlock or disputes that recently came into force on 15th Sept 2024. Implications to both employers and trade unions are highlighted and discussed with participants attending the forum, to prepare them for the above changes pursuant to the recent TUA and IRA amendments. 

Also covered in the seminar is a basic overview of the collective bargaining process and salient points for companies to consider with a view to promoting industrial relations harmony and a positive industrial relations climate at the workplace.

Dato’ Dr. Lim was an ex-Investigating Officer attached to the Commercial Crimes Division of the Royal Malaysia Police. He has more than 32 years of hands-on experience in Human Resources and Industrial Relations serving in companies that include Maybank, Lion Group, Hong Leong Group, F&N Group, HSBC Bank and Tan Chong Group.  

He is currently a member of the Industrial Court Panel representing employers (7 terms), a Council member of MEF (3 terms) and serving as a member of the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) for 6years. He is an active trainer on employment laws of Malaysia and various topics in HR Strategy and Human Resource Management and had trained more than 3,000 employees from 1,500 over companies in Malaysia in the last 2 decades. 

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