IPOH - The Perak government is targeting 25 per cent of private sector workers to set up trade unions in the next five years, said state Human Resources, Health, Indian Community Affairs and National Integration Committee chairman A. Sivanesan.
He said this is because it is the right of every worker to work in a safe and healthy environment and, as such, be in line with international conventions to protect workers' rights.
He also said that Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad agreed to help workers in the state form trade unions, adding that if there were employers who challenged them in court, the state government would provide legal aid for the workers.
"I hope employers in the state will allow their workers to form unions and private sector workers to have the courage to step forward. My office will provide all the resources," he told a media conference after officiating the state-level World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2023, here, today.
He added that, so far, 91 per cent or 14.6 million workers in the country have not joined a union or have no union at their workplace while Perak has recorded about 10 per cent.
Sivanesan said it was not easy to establish a trade union as it requires the support of at least 51 per cent of the local workers at the workplace and it can become more complicated if there are more foreign workers, who cannot be members, than local workers.
Meanwhile, in a separate issue, Perak Department of Occupational Safety and Health (JKKP) director Dr Rabaayah Daud said they are still investigating the incident involving a front hoe driver who was crushed to death by a 10-tonne boulder at a quarry near Simpang Pulai, on Saturday (May 27) to determine if any violations occurred.
On May 27, Ipoh District Police chief ACP Yahaya Hassan said the 48-year-old victim was clearing quarry boulders between noon and 1 pm using the front hoe when the boulder dislodged and fell from a height of 25 metres and crushed the cockpit of his vehicle. - BERNAMA