PETALING JAYA: The government’s work-from-home (WFH) directive, that allows 10% of management staff to work from the office, has caused much confusion.
Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) executive director Datuk Shamsuddin Baradan yesterday asked the International Trade and Industry Ministry (Miti) to clarify whom this exemption applies to.
Citing an example of a production manager who has an office but needs to go down to the shop floor, he asked what category this employee would fall under.
“Miti has to categorically state what it means by office workers. Is it managers and supervisors, all management staff or a certain group of top management?
“The idea of working for four hours a day just for three days at the office will create a lot of problems. Commuting over long distances to work just four hours makes no real sense.”
Shamsuddin said allowing only 10% of management staff to work in offices would not be a problem for big companies, but can be challenging for small and micro businesses.
He pointed out that over 655,000 companies fall under small and medium enterprises or micro businesses.
“Normally, they only have a limited number of employees. If these businesses have about five employees each, how will they operate with only 10% of their staff strength?”
Shamsuddin said the government might not have meant this to apply to such micro businesses.
The government needs to clearly state how small businesses can operate, he added.
Miti Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali said 776,135 workers, or 25% of the 3.1 million workers, are in management and supervisory roles, based on feedback received from the industry.
He said taking into account the need for the presence of a small number of employees at the management and supervisory level, Miti has agreed to allow a maximum 10% of employees to work on site, limited to just four hours from 10am to 2pm for three days a week.
He said companies do not have to submit applications for these workers, adding that employers would only have to issue letters for approval for travel for each employee who is allowed to work throughout the conditional movement control order.
