Malaysia’s Human Resources Ministry is encouraging government-linked companies (GLCs) and private firms in Malaysia to implement menstrual leave policy on their own without waiting for the government to legislate it. The ministry said establishments with collective agreements could also initiate negotiations with their trade unions to incorporate such policy into their collective agreements. However, as a whole, the ministry noted that it will need to do an in-depth study to ascertain the pros and cons of legislating this matter, taking into account the appropriate mechanisms need to be put in place to smoothly implement this policy at company level to avoid any misuse or pitfalls.
“On this, the ministry needs to engage with the employers and workers associations before making any decisions. Discussion with other relevant ministries would also need to be done,” the Human Resources Ministry said in a written reply to the New Straits Times. The ministry was responding to questions on whether Malaysia could follow in the foot steps of Spain, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea in introducing a national menstrual leave policy. The ministry further noted that though enacting a law to regulate entitlement of menstrual leave in the private sector could be seen as a progressive move by the government to enhance women’s rights at the workplace, authorities have to be wary if this could instead have any adverse effect on the employment opportunities for women.
“The Human Resources Ministry is following keenly the on-going debate and developments in several countries with regard to enacting laws to regulate menstrual leave policy for female employees in the private sector. “It is known that several countries have some form of legislations to regulate this matter, either as a paid leave or unpaid leave ranging from one to two days in a month. In most other countries, menstrual leave is implemented on a company to company basis.
“The ministry is also aware of the findings of an online poll (conducted by the NST) recently which shows 87 per cent of 1,177 people polled preferred an adoption of a menstrual leave policy in Malaysia. “While the ministry appreciates the outcome of this poll, we must not immediately come to a decision to implement this as a part of the law.
While the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) had said menstrual leave should be given separately and not included in the sick leave as a whole, the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) opined that menstrual leave would cast women as less able than men and could lead to further discrimination against female employees in the workplace, potentially threatening their employment. MEF president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said businesses that want to introduce menstrual leave should consult with their employees in order to design a suitable policy which is “established genuinely and with the understanding that female employees’ needs based on menstruation can be addressed on a case-by-case basis.”
NST
