Letter: Now's not the time for poor workers to engage lawyers

LETTER | We refer to the Malaysiakini report on 31 March which quoted Penang exco member Jagdeep Singh Deo who happened to have said that the issue of employers not paying the salaries of workers or forcing a pay-cut due to the Covid-19 crisis is a legal issue. He had advised the MTUC to take legal action against these errant employers.

We are shocked that he is asking the poor workers who are struggling for survival to seek legal help at a time when they have to worry about feeding their families and waiting for cash handouts from the federal government.

The movement control order (MCO) and the current situation is totally a different situation from a normal economic crisis. This is why the government has issued a directive to employers not to retrench, cut salaries or force workers to take no-pay leave during this order. This is similar to an emergency situation where the employers and every government, including the state governments, has to ensure the rakyat survives.

As such, the MTUC reiterates that the current circumstances are extraordinary and require extraordinary and special measures from the employers and the government. One important step for governments at various levels is to enforce the federal authority’s directive to employers to keep their workers at any cost during this period.

Jagdeep's advice by someone who represents the government is irresponsible as it tantamount to adducing that the government is not responsible for the actions of these irresponsible and unscrupulous employers who flout government regulations

Questions are being asked whether this is an attempt to get people to engage lawyers which require money, thus bringing business to the legal fraternity. It can thus be construed as encouraging a fraternity to capitalise on a situation while the poor workers are left in limbo.

Being a senior lawyer himself, he is fully aware that these kinds of cases will take an enormous time for settlement which will undoubtedly involve huge costs which the struggling workers will have to bear. Employers have the financial muscle to withstand these long-drawn processes but not poor workers.

Coming from a senior state government leader, we question as to what the rationale and ethics are in his suggestion. He has shown a complete lack of empathy and humanity for the suffering workers.

What then is the role of the government at all levels? Let us remind him that they are there to protect workers from unscrupulous employers. More so at a time when the poor workers are the most hit and will continue to bear the brunt of uncaring employers and governments.

We sincerely hope that politicians will protect B40 and M40 workers and that this is the moment for them to rise to the occasion to ensure that workers are not abandoned by selfish employers. Their primary duty as elected representatives is to ensure the rakyat is given adequate social protection.

The writer is MTUC secretary-general.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.