EPF takes firm action on 249 directors

PETALING JAYA: A total of 249 company directors have been barred from leaving Malaysia without first settling their Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contribution arrears.
The EPF had submitted the names to the Immigration Department between April and June 2014 (2Q'14) as provided under Section 39 of the EPF Act 1991.
"Preventing company directors from leaving the country is part of our diligent enforcement exercise and this further proves our determination in safeguarding the retirement well-being of our members," EPF head of Corporate Affairs Nik Affendi Jaafar said in a statement yesterday.
"We wish to remind all employers that EPF savings is an important source of income for their employees' retirement and we will not hesitate to take firm action against employers and company directors who fail to remit their employees' monthly EPF contributions," he added.
Under the EPF Act 1991, all employers are obliged to submit their monthly statutory contributions on behalf of their employees on or before the 15th day of every month.
In 2Q'14, 114 errant employers were fined a total of RM162,200 by the courts under Section 43(2) of the EPF Act 1991.
During the same quarter, a total of 270 civil suits were filed with the courts against company directors while 843 criminal cases were filed against employers who had defaulted on their employees' monthly EPF contributions.
Among the errant employers were Jimat Padu Enterprise from Sarawak, who received the highest fine at RM6,000; Kok Ann Construction Works (M) Sdn Bhd (Selangor) at RM5,300; Konsultant Timur (Sarawak) and two Penang-based companies - Kleasound Sdn Bhd and Bright Formula (M) Sdn Bhd - were fined RM5,000 each; and LD Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd (Kedah) was fined RM4,000.
"Errant employers were usually allowed by the court to settle their contribution arrears by instalments of up to six months. During this period, the EPF will monitor them closely to ensure that the outstanding amounts are paid in full.
"Once the full amount has been received, the EPF will credit all outstanding contributions to the respective members' accounts," Nik Affendi said.
He advised members who found discrepancies in their EPF accounts to refer to their employers or report the matter to the EPF immediately.
Members can contact the EPF Call Centre at 03-8922 6000 or submit their queries online.