KUCHING, The draft amendments to the Sarawak Labour Ordinance (SLO) have been finalised and submitted to the Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA) for further action and to be referred to the Attorney General's Chambers. Deputy Minister in the Premier's Department (Labour, Immigration and Project Monitoring) Datuk Gerawat Gala said the draft amendments are in line with the International Labour Convention and the latest amendments to the Employment Act 1955 (Amendment) 2022 for the benefit of both employers and employees. 'Among the proposed amendments is a paternity leave of seven days for male workers so that they can celebrate the birth of a child, look after the wife who has just given birth and handle matters such as child registration. 'Maternity leave is increased from 60 days to 98 days. This proposal is in line with Maternity Protection Convention 2000 No.183 which provides that the period of maternity leave should not be less than 14 weeks,' he said. Speaking at the Sarawak Labour Day celebration today, he said the amendments also included a reduction in weekly working hours from 48 hours to 45 hours to increase labour productivity and preserve the welfare of workers and families. 'The Ministry of Human Resources is also of the view that it is appropriate that the 48 working hours hours a week be reduced to 45 hours to increase labour productivity. 'This proposal is also in line with the provisions of the Employment Act 1955 (Amendment 2022) which the Dewan Negara approved on March 30, 2022, and has come into effect from Jan 1, 2023, and on humanitarian grounds,' he said. He said the Sarawak government also welcomes and supports the federal government's initiative on the proposed implementation of progressive wages if the initiative brings benefits to private sector workers in the state. 'To give opportunities to local workers compared with the dependence on foreign workers to the state, the Sarawak government has tightened the policy for the entry of foreign workers to the state. "The foreign wo rker application system has been streamlined from time to time to prevent the influx of foreign workers in Sarawak," he added. Source: BERNAMA News Agency