SENAI: The Government will introduce the Employment Insurance Scheme (EIS) to offer protection to workers who are retrenched when their employers wind up business.

Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot Jaem said both employees and employers will contribute to the scheme, similar to the contributions made to the Social Security Organisation (Sosco) at present.

He said ministry officials made study visits to Europe, the United States, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam in 2014 and 2015 on similar schemes implemented in those countries.

"We hope to table the EIS laws in the next Parliament meeting or by early 2017," Riot said in a press conference at the Hari Raya open house at the Southern Region National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health here Wednesday.

He said the ministry had met employers and businesses and the majority had expressed their willingness to participate in the EIS.

Riot said the scheme will involve some 430,000 employers and benefit about 6.5 million workers.

"This scheme will protect local workers in case their employers go out of business," he added.

Riot cited the case of the country's first syariah-complaint airline, RayaniAir, which owed its workers five months of salary when it stopped operations.

He said there is not much that the ministry can do to help retrenched workers get their unpaid salary from their former companies.

Riot added that the workers could take their case to the Industrial Court, but it would be difficult to ask companies that were already declared bankrupt to settle their dues.

TAGS / KEYWORDS:
Richard Riot Jaem , EIS , Malaysia

Source:
http://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2016/07/19/job-insurance-scheme-on-the-cards-to-protect-workers/