709 Retrenched Workers Receive rm8.6mil in Compensation
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Today, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob informed that all 709 former workers from a steel mill in Kemaman laid off in 2014 will receive RM8.8 million in compensation.
He announced the good news at an event in Chukai, Kemaman, Terengganu, where he handed out the compensation to the former workers, with each of them receiving between RM3,000 and RM21,000.
A seven-year court battle
Ismail Sabri said the case of the former workers' claim for compensation had finally been settled after a seven-year court battle.
The case of the workers' dismissal from the company was brought to the Kuala Lumpur High Court.
The steel mill in Kemaman retrenched its workers in November 2014. The company told the workers in July 2014 that it was facing financial troubles and would undergo a business operations restructuring.
The company, created in 1982 under Malaysia's heavy industrialisation policy, switched ownership numerous times after running into financial and other issues before it ultimately ceased operations.
The company failed to pay its workers salaries for up to six months
Meanwhile, Kamarul Baharin Mansor, secretary-general of the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC), said the company played a prominent role in Kemaman's development.
However, he said the way the company retrenched its former workers was 'very sad'. He added that the workers were not paid their salaries for a maximum of six months and were not allowed to enter the factory. The company only posted a notice on the premises' entrance.
A. Ghani Ismail, 62, who the company employed for 30 years, thanked all who had fought for the workers' rights. He said he was grateful that the issue was finally resolved. The former store supervisor, who received RM20,000 in compensation, said he would use the money for Raya and to perform umrah.
Jailati Said, 45, who worked for 13 years as a clerk for the company, said her efforts to seek compensation had finally paid off.
The mother of four said she went to court twice in 2018 to receive compensation and never failed to attend any MTUC events related to this case as she was keen to find out the latest developments.
She added that she would use the payment she received today to pay off debts and other commitments, such as covering the losses suffered after her food stall in Teluk Kalong was flooded recently.
Source: Bernama