Private Employment Agencies 1 LAWS OF MALAYSIA REPRINT Act 246 PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES ACT 1981 Incorporating all amendments up to 1 January 2006 PUBLISHED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF LAW REVISION, MALAYSIA UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE REVISION OF LAWS ACT 1968 IN COLLABORATION WITH PERCETAKAN NASIONAL MALAYSIA BHD 2006 2 PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES ACT 1981 Date of Royal Assent ... ... ... ... ... 12 February 1981 Date of publication in the Gazette ... ... 19 February 1981 PREVIOUS REPRINT First Reprint ... ... ... ... ... 2001 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 246 PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES ACT 1981 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Section 1. Short title 2. Application and exemption 3. Interpretation 4. Appointment of officers 5. All officers to be public servants 6. Protection of public servants 7. Necessity to obtain a licence 8. Application for a licence 9. Conditions to be fulfilled for the grant of a licence 10. Form and duration of licence 11. Renewal of licence 12. Place of business to be as stated in licence 13. Display of licence 14. Fees for services 15. Placement injurious to the public interest 16. Endorsement for overseas recruitment 17. Restriction on registration or recruitment 18. Advertisement 19. Maintenance of records 20. Returns 21. Power to enter and inspect premises 22. Private employment agency deemed to be a public place 23. Power to issue directions 24. Disposal of bond 4 ACT 246 Laws of Malaysia Section 25. Cancellation of licence 26. Appeal 27. Regulations 28. Offences 29. Miscellaneous offences 30. Offences by bodies of persons 31. Prosecution 32. Penalty SCHEDULE Private Employment Agencies 5 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 246 PRIVATE EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES ACT 1981 An Act to regulate private employment agencies in Malaysia. [1 August 1981, P.U. (B) 427/1981] BE IT ENACTED by the Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the advice and consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: Short title 1. This Act may be cited as the Private Employment Agencies Act 1981. Application and exemption 2. (1) This Act shall apply throughout Malaysia. (2) The Minister may by order publish in the Gazette and subject to such conditions as he may impose, exempt from the whole or any part of this Act any area, occupation, organization or class of persons. Interpretation 3. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-- "advertisement" shall include any notice, circular, pamphlet or any document and any announcement made orally or by any means of producing or transmitting light or sound; "Director General" means the Director General of Labour; "employer" means any person who engages a worker and includes the agent, manager or factor of such employer; 6 ACT 246 Laws of Malaysia "fee" means payment in whatever form for services rendered; "licence" means licence issued under this Act; "mass media" means any medium used by private employment agencies to advertise; "Minister" means the Minister charged with responsibility for labour and manpower; "prescribed" means prescribed by the Minister; "private employment agency" means-- (a) an employment agency conducted with a view to profit, that is to say, any person, company, institution, agency or other organization which acts as intermediary for the purpose of procuring employment for a worker or supplying a worker for an employer with a view to deriving either directly or indirectly any pecuniary or other material advantage from either employer or worker; the expression does not include newspapers or other publications unless they are published wholly or mainly for the purpose of acting as intermediaries between employers and workers; (b) an employment agency not conducted with a view to profit, that is to say, the placing services of any company, institution, agency or other organization which, though not conducted with a view to derive any pecuniary or other material advantage, levies from either employer or worker from the above service an entrance fee, a periodical contribution or any other charge; "worker" means any person who works for hire or reward, whether as apprentice or not, and includes any person seeking such work. Appointment of officers 4. (1) The Minister may appoint a Director General and such other officers as he considers necessary for the purposes of carrying out this Act. (2) Subject to such limitations, if any, as may be prescribed by regulations made under this Act, any officer appointed under subsection (1) shall perform all the duties imposed and may exercise all the powers conferred upon the Director General by this Act and Private Employment Agencies 7 every duty so performed and power so exercised shall be deemed to have been duly performed and exercised for the purposes of this Act. All officers to be public servants 5. All officers appointed under section 4 shall be deemed to be public servants for the purposes of the Penal Code [Act 574]. Protection of public servants 6. No suit shall lie against any public servant for anything done or omitted to be done by him in good faith without negligence and in intended exercise of any power or performance of any duty provided or imposed by this Act. Necessity to obtain a licence 7. (1) No person shall carry on the business of a private employment agency except under the authority of a valid licence issued by the Director General: Provided, however, that it shall not be a contravention of the provisions of this section if a person who has commenced to carry on the business of a private employment agency before the appointed date and who has applied for a licence under this Act within the time allowed by subsection 8(2) continues to carry on such business until the determination of his application for the licence. (2) The authority of a licence issued under this Act does not absolve any person from complying with the provisions of any other written law for the time being in force. Application for a licence 8. (1) Every application for a licence shall be in the prescribed form and shall be accompanied with the licence fee as specified in the Schedule. (2) Every person carrying on the business of a private employment agency on the appointed date shall apply to the Director General for a licence within one month after that date. 8 ACT 246 Laws of Malaysia Conditions to be fulfilled for the grant of a licence 9. No licence to carry on the business of a private employment agency shall be granted unless-- (a) where such business is to be carried on by an individual, he is a citizen of Malaysia; (b) where such business is to be carried on by a partnership, the partners are citizens of Malaysia; (c) where such business is to be carried on by a company, the majority of the shares in the capital of the company are held by citizens of Malaysia; (d) the person in-charge of and every employee or agent whose duties are connected with such business-- (i) is a person of good character; (ii) is not an undischarged bankrupt; and (iii) has not been convicted of an offence and sentenced to more than one year imprisonment or a fine of more than two thousand ringgit; (e) there are suitable premises for carrying on such business; (f) such individual who, or the partnership or company which, is to carry on such business undertakes that such business will be carried on in a morally and irreproachable manner; (g) such individual, firm or company enters into a bond with the Director General, with two sureties, in such sum as may be prescribed by the Minister in the Schedule. The Minister may prescribe separate sum for employment within Malaysia and for employment abroad and may at any time vary the bond prescribed in the Schedule; and (h) such other conditions as may be prescribed for the purposes of this section are fulfilled. Form and duration of licence 10. Every licence shall be in the prescribed form and unless it is cancelled earlier, shall be in force for a period of twelve months from the date of its issue. Private Employment Agencies 9 Renewal of licence 11. Application for renewal of licence shall be submitted at least two months before the expiry date and shall be in such form and manner as may be prescribed by the Minister. Place of business to be as stated in licence 12. A licenced private employment agency shall carry on its business in such place as stated in the licence and shall not change its place of business without the prior permission in writing of the Director General. Display of licence 13. A licenced private employment agency shall display its licence in a conspicuous place in the premises where the business is carried on. Fees for services 14. (1) No private employment agency shall charge for any service rendered a fee other than or in excess of that prescribed in the Schedule and for every fee received a receipt shall be issued. (2) The Minister may by order publish in the Gazette, amend the fees prescribed in the Schedule. Placement injurious to the public interest 15. No private employment agency shall place or seek to place any person in any occupation injurious to the public interest or knowingly sends, directs or takes any person to any place for immoral purposes. Endorsement for overseas recruitment 16. (1) A licence issued under subsection 7(1) may be endorsed by the Director General for purposes of recruiting persons residing in Malaysia for overseas employment provided that a bond as prescribed in the Schedule is placed with the Director General. 10 ACT 246 Laws of Malaysia (2) An endorsement shall be valid for the same duration as the original licence. (3) Prior to registering or recruiting any person residing in Malaysia for overseas employment, a private employment agency shall furnish the Director General with the following: (a) the name and address of the prospective employer; (b) satisfactory evidence of specific requirement for workers by an overseas employer or employers; (c) the category or categories of employment and the number of workers required in respect of each category; (d) the terms and conditions of employment to be offered; (e) proposed employment agreement to be signed by the prospective worker and employer; and (f) any other information as may be required by the Director General. (4) The Director General may give directives and impose conditions as he deems fit bearing in mind the prevailing local and international labour market situations. Restriction on registration or recruitment 17. The Minister may by order publish in the Gazette, prescribe that a private employment agency may not register the particular c a t e g o r y of employment including employment for overseas recruitment. Advertisement 18. (1) No private employment agency may advertise in any mass media unless the advertisement contains-- (a) the licence number; and (b) correct information relating to vacancies, qualifications thereof and terms and conditions of employment. (2) Any private employment agency in breach of subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence under this Act. Private Employment Agencies 11 Maintenance of records 19. Every private employment agency shall maintain-- (a) records of registration showing the names, addresses, identity card numbers and qualifications of the workers; (b) records of vacancies and all aspects relating to the vacancies, that is, the number of vacancies, the qualifications of candidates required, the names and addresses of the e m p l o y e r s notifying the vacancies, the places of employment where the vacancies occur and the terms and conditions of employment; (c) records of placement of workers; (d) records of fees collected; and (e) any other records as may be required by the Director General from time to time. Returns