PETALING JAYA: An employer has the right to take action against his employee for any misconduct, in or out of the office.
But there is a line. For most companies, such disciplinary action will only be instituted if the employee’s action affects the company’s interests or if it is criminal in nature.
An employer may also take action against an employee if his professional performance is persistently affected by his domestic problems.
Otherwise, as Malaysian Employers Federation president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman told theSun, such actions will be regards as a personal or domestic issue.
Syed Hussain was commenting on a report of a man who lost his job as a deputy manager after a video clip showing him beating up his wife went viral in the Chinese city of Xi’an.
The man can be seen hitting his wife on the head while she tries to protect their child.
The man’s employer later announced on social media that he had been removed from his position as deputy manager.
Syed Hussain said that in Malaysia, the line is very clear. “If an employee is moonlighting or is involved in criminal activities or drug abuse, even if it is outside the workplace, the employer can and will take action against him,” he said.
He pointed out that this is necessary to protect the company’s interests as well as the safety and health of other employees.
“The worker’s behaviour, even when it happens outside of work hours, will affect the employer’s image. Any unsavoury activity on the part of the employee can damage the reputation of the employer and his business,” Syed Hussain said.
However, he said, employers do not have the right to intervene in a domestic matter.
He pointed out that while disciplinary action is a prerogative of the management, such action may turn into a matter of dispute if it is shown that there has been a lack of good faith, unfair labour practices or violation of the principle of natural justice on the part of the employer.
“The decision of the management shall therefore be based on just cause and excuse rather than being baseless or perverse,” he said.
“To prevent the possibility of wrongful action by the employer, the employee must be given every opportunity to defend himself,” Syed Hussain added.
Malaysian Trades Union Congress acting president Mohd Effendy Abdul Ghani pointed out that the behaviour of employees at the workplace has an impact on business operations and, by extension, its success or failure.
“Professional behaviours generate collaborative work efforts and elevate the status of the company,” he told theSun.
On the other hand, he said, unprofessional or bad behaviour could potentially thwart productivity, affect morale and create a poor public image of the company.
“But if the bad attitude or personal behavioural problems of an employee are not brought into the workplace and they do not affect his performance, they company has no right to blame the employee for its image problem.
Mohd Effendy also pointed out that proper procedures should be adhered to if the employee is to be dismissed.
“If the employee feels that he has been unfairly dismissed, he has 60 days to file a complaint with the relevant authority,” he said.
Any employee, regardless of his rank, salary or nationality, has the right to file such a complaint.
Effendy said aggrieved employees can also lodge their reports at the MTUC Workers Service Centre here.
He said employers should focus on the employees’ well-being at the workplace given that a high stress level has a serious impact on productivity.
“Careful planning and empathy in dealing with employees whose personal problems affect their work performance are useful tools that employers should have in their toolboxes,” he said.
Labour lawyer Xenia Z. C. Lok said that employers can intervene as far as mutually agreed upon in their employment agreement or contract with the employee.
“The employee handbook or code of conduct or ethics can also serve as a guide,” she added.
