Section 52

as respects a child, an illegitimate child or a child adopted in accordance with any written law relating to adoption; and

as respects parents, the parents of an illegitimate child, and any person by whom the employee was adopted in accordance with any written law relating to adoption;

“District Engineer”, in respect of a district, means any engineer in the service of the Federal or State Government who is for the time being carrying out the duties of the Public

Works Department for that district and, for the purpose of subsection (1) of section 122an, includes any officer authorized in writing in that behalf by the District Engineer;

“employer” means—

any person who has entered into a contract of service to employ any other person as an employee and includes the agent, manager and factor of such first mentioned person;

or

Labour Ordinance of Sarawak (Amendment)

where the owner or lessee (including the agent, manager and factor of such owner or lessee) of a place of employment (hereinafter referred to as the first mentioned person) has entered into an agreement, whether oral or in writing and whether expressed or implied, with another person for the purpose of executing any work for or connected with any business, trade, operation or interest of such first mentioned person, the term “employer” shall also include such first mentioned person, and the word “employ”, with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, shall be construed accordingly;

“estate” means any agricultural land exceeding 40.46 hectares in extent upon which agricultural operations of any kind are carried on or upon which the produce of any plants or trees is collected or treated, or any mine or any other place of employment so declared by order of the Minister;

“Medical Officer of Health” means any medical practitioner in the service of the Government or any local authority who is for the time being carrying out the duties of a Medical Officer of Health in any area, district, or local authority area, and for the purpose of subsection (1) of section 122an, includes any officer authorized in writing in that behalf by the Medical Officer of Health;

“private hospital” means a private hospital as provided under the Private Healthcare

Facilities and Services Act 1998 [Act 586];

“resident manager”, in relation to an estate, means any employer or agent of an employer who resides on, or is in immediate charge of, the estate in which the employees are employed;

“resident registered medical practitioner”

means any registered medical practitioner employed by the employer and who resides on the estate in which the employees are employed.

Chapter XVb.

HOUSING AND OTHER AMENITIES.

Building to comply with requirements.

Any building, which immediately before the commencement of this Part was used for the housing of employees, as a nursery or as a community hall, by an employer and was erected or converted in accordance with the requirements of any written law in force at the time of its erection or conversion may continue to be used by such employer:

Provided that such building be converted to comply with the provisions of this Part or any rules made thereunder.

Labour Ordinance of Sarawak (Amendment)

Notwithstanding the provision in subsection (2), the Director may, upon application by an employer, permit subject to any condition as he may impose, such building to continue to be used without conversion for such period as he deems fit.

Pursuant to any investigation carried out on any place of employment, where the

Director is satisfied that any building, which immediately before or after the commencement of this Part, was used for the housing of employees or their dependants, or as a nursery or as a community hall, does not comply with the provisions of this Part or any rules made under this Part, the Director may issue to the employer concerned a notice, of not less than three months, of his intention to order demolition and replacement, alteration, repair or making good any deficiency or defect thereof.

Where, upon the expiry of the notice under subsection (4), the employer fails to take such action as required to the satisfaction of the Director, the Director may issue to the employer concerned, an order in writing requiring the employer to demolish and replace, alter or repair such building or to make good any deficiency or defect thereof within six months from the date of the order and subject to such conditions as the Director may specify in the order.

The order under subsection (5) may include a directive that no employee or his dependants shall be permitted to occupy any such building pending such demolition and replacement, alteration or repair, or the making good of any defect or deficiency thereof, or until the requirements of the order have been complied with:

Provided that where an appeal has been made under section 122ao in respect of the order issued under subsection (5), then such order shall be suspended pending the determination of the appeal.

Supply of water and electricity and maintenance of houses.

to provide free and adequate piped water drawn from a public main, or where the Director so permits in writing, to provide free and adequate supply of potable piped water drawn from any other source which shall be filtered and treated in a manner approved by the Director;

to provide adequate electricity supply;

to ensure that the buildings are kept in a good state of repair and painted to present a satisfactory appearance;

and

to ensure that no unauthorized extensions or structural alterations are made to the buildings.

For the purposes of this section, the adequacy of water and electricity supply shall be as determined by the Director:

Provided that the Director may, if he is satisfied in any case that it is impracticable to provide piped water supply for each house, approve any other means of water supply:

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45

Provided further that the Director may, in any case where he is satisfied that the provision of electricity supply is not practicable or viable, exempt the employer in writing from the requirement of such provision.

Where water supply is drawn from a source other than a public main, the Director may, for the purpose of ensuring that the water supply is suitable for consumption, cause the Medical Officer of Health to take samples of water supply for analysis and report, the costs of which shall be borne by the employer.

Where water supply is obtained from a public main and is piped to each house, the Director may, on application made to him, partly or wholly exempt the employer in writing from the requirement to provide free water supply to the employees subject to such conditions as the Director may impose.

Where any extension or structural alteration has been made to the buildings without the permission of the Director, the Director may, after giving one month’s notice, require the employer to have the extension or structural alteration demolished.

Erection of building intended to be used for the housing of employees, as nursery or as community hall.

No work relating to the aforesaid building shall commence before the submission of such plan is endorsed by the Director.

For the purpose of securing that the minimum standards required under this Part or any rules made thereunder are complied with, the relevant authority may approve such plans subject to such conditions

(including alterations of the plans) as he may deem fit to impose thereon.

For the purposes of this section, the relevant authority shall be the authorities as may be determined by the Minister after consultation with the State Authority.

Building endangering health or safety.

by a Medical Officer of Health, any building, estate hospital, group estate hospital or clinic on a place of employment which, by reason of its design, site, size, sanitation, the quantity and quality of the water supply provided for the occupants of such buildings or other conditions, appears to the Director to be likely to endanger health; and

by the District Engineer, any building, estate hospital, group estate hospital or clinic on a place of employment which, by reason of its construction, state of repair or condition, appears to the Director to be likely to endanger the safety of any person.

The Medical Officer of Health or the District Engineer or both, as the case may be, shall, after inspecting any building, estate hospital, group estate hospital or clinic under this section, submit to the Director a report of his or their findings, together with any recommendation made thereon relating to the necessary measures required to be taken in respect of such building, estate hospital, group estate hospital or clinic.

Labour Ordinance of Sarawak (Amendment)

Subject to subsection (4), on receipt of such report referred to in subsection (2), the Director may issue to the employer concerned, an order in writing requiring the employer to demolish and replace, alter or repair the building, estate hospital, group estate hospital or clinic or to make good any deficiency or defect within such time and subject to such conditions as the Director may specify in the order and such order may direct that no employee or his dependants shall be permitted to occupy any building, estate hospital, group estate hospital or clinic pending such demolition and replacement, alteration or repair or until the order has been complied with:

Provided that where an appeal has been made under section 122ao in respect of the order, then such order shall be suspended pending the decision of the appeal.

No order under subsection (3) shall be issued unless a copy of the report under subsection (2) received by the Director has been furnished to the employer by the Director, and in making such order, the Director shall give due consideration to any representation that may be made by the employer in respect of the report.

Building not originally built for housing of employees.

An employer may make an application to the Director in the manner specified under subsection (3) for the approval for the purpose specified under subsection (1).

The application required to be made under subsection (2) shall be accompanied by a plan of the site of the building and a plan setting out the details of the building or of the conversion proposed to be made thereto and subsections (2) and (3) of section 122d shall apply to such plan as they apply to a plan of a building or of the site of a building mentioned in that section.

Nursery.

The employer shall maintain the nursery and shall accommodate therein the dependants of the employees during the period in which such employees are away working for the employer:

Provided that he shall not accommodate therein such dependants in excess of the number specified in the order mentioned in subsection (1).

Labour Ordinance of Sarawak (Amendment)

On each day a dependant is accommodated at the nursery, the employer, at his own expense, shall provide for such dependant with play equipment and a supply of milk—

Any employer who contravenes the provisions of this section commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit and shall also, in the case of a continuing offence, be liable to a daily fine not exceeding one thousand ringgit for each day the offence continues after conviction.

Allotment of land.

An employee residing on the place of employment who has been employed for a period of not less than six months by the employer aforesaid shall be entitled to have allotted to him an area for cultivation for communal use and food supply.

If an area of land allotted for cultivation

(whether wholly or partly) shall remain unplanted for a period of six months from the date of the allotment, or if an employee uses the area of land allotted to him for a purpose different from that for which it was allotted, or if he does not use it at all for the purpose for which it was allotted, the employer may terminate such allotment and thereafter may allot such area of land to another employee.

In relation to the setting aside of land under this section—

The Director may, for sufficient reason, exempt to such extent as may be stated in such exemption, any employer from compliance with this section on such terms and conditions and for such period as he may deem fit.

Any employer who contravenes the provisions of this section commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit and shall also, in the case of a continuing offence, be liable to a daily fine not exceeding one thousand ringgit for each day the offence continues after conviction.

For the purposes of this section,

“place of employment” means an estate or such other place as may be prescribed by the Minister by notification in the Gazette to be a place of employment.

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51

Community hall, sports and other recreational facilities.

to construct at the place of employment, within such reasonable time as may be specified, a community hall capable of accommodating such number of persons as may be specified; and

to provide facilities for sports and other recreational activities as may be specified.

The employer shall maintain the community hall, sports and other recreational facilities in a satisfactory condition as the Director thinks fit.

Any employer who contravenes the provisions of this section commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding fifty thousand ringgit and shall also, in the case of a continuing offence, be liable to a daily fine not exceeding one thousand ringgit for each day the offence continues after conviction.

No rent or charge to be levied for benefits under this

Chapter.