Malaysia mulls enacting new regulations for gig sector

Deputy Minister of Human Resources Datuk Awang Hashim said the (Ministry of Human Resources) KSM was still holding discussions with various stakeholders, such as service providers and industry players, to get the opinions of all parties on the needs of gig workers and consider the sector’s overall employment situation.

“The Occupational Safety and Health Master Plan 2021-2025 (OSHMP 2025) has outlined a strategic core value to tackle these issues,” he said when winding up the Occupational Health and Safety Bill (Amendment) 2020 at the Dewan Negara.

Under the core value, a special programme has been designed to increase the awareness of and sensitivity to safety and health practices in e-hailing services, including p-hailing.

The programme was implemented by various agencies, including KSM, the Transport Ministry, the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS), the Social Security Organisation (Socso) and relevant non-governmental organisations, Awang said.

The issue of occupational safety and health (OSH) was discussed with p-hailing associations and service provider companies, Awang said, adding that a guideline on OSH practices is being drafted to minimise health and road-accident risks.

READ: Malaysia launches three new HR initiatives

Meanwhile, Awang said the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) had conducted 243,000 enforcement activities countrywide from January to November this year with 168 cases involving a penalty of a total of RM1.90 million (US$448,746) being completed, while 424 compounds were issued amounting to RM1.44 million (US$340,102), according to Bernama.