OSH MANAGEMENT - Employer's Responsibility By Law

EMPLOYER'S RESPONSIBILITY BY LAW

By Faudzil Harun

Based on Malaysian Law :
Occupational Safety and Health Act, 1994 and its Regulations.


Section 15 (1) General Duties of Employers and Self-Employed Persons to Their Employees.

It shall be the duty of every employer and every self employed person to ensure, so far as is practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of all his employees.

Section 15 (2)

Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), the matters to which the duty extends include in particular—

(a) the provision and maintenance of plant and systems of work that are, 

     so far as is practicable, safe and without risks to health;

(b) the making of arrangements for ensuring, so far as is practicable, safety 

     and absence of risks to health in connection with the use or operation, 

     handling, storage and transport of plant and substances;

(c) the provision of such information, instruction, training and supervision 

     as is necessary to ensure, so far as is practicable, the safety and health 

     at work of his employees;

(d) so far as is practicable, as regards any place of work under the control 

     of the employer or self-employed person, the maintenance of it in a 

     condition that is safe and without risks to health and the provision and 

     maintenance of the means of access to and egress from it that are safe 

     and without such risks;

(e) the provision and maintenance of a working environment for his 
     employees that is, so far as is practicable, safe, without risks to health, 
     and adequate as regards facilities for their welfare at work.


Section 16 Duty to Formulate Safety and Health Policy


Section 17 General Duties of Employers and Self-Employed Persons to Persons Other Than Their Employees


Section 26 Duty Not to Charge Employees for Things Done or Provided


Section 27 Discrimination Against Employee, etc.


Section 28 Medical Surveillance


Section 29 Appointment of Safety and Health Officer

●  Building operation or engineering construction where total project exceeds 

    RM20million;

●  Shipbuilding, gas processing, petrochemical industry, chemical & allied 

    industry, boiler & pressure vessel manufacturing, metal industry (canning, 

    stamping, blanking, shearing, bending), wood working (cutting, sawing, 

    planning, molding, sanding, peeling), cement industry employing more 

    than 100 employees;

●  Manufacturing activity other than specified above, employing more than 

    500 employees.

Section 30 Establishment of Safety and Health Committee at Place of Work

● If there are 40 or more persons employed at the place of work.

Section 31 Functions of Safety and Health Committee

● Keep under review the measures taken to ensure the safety and health 

   at work.

● Investigate unsafe condition and resolve it.

Section 32 Notification of Accidents, Dangerous Occurrence, Occupational Poisoning and Occupational Diseases, and Inquiry


Important Safety Points :

Refer to the following statues for reference and guidlines :

Act 514 – Occupational Safety and Health Act, 1994 and its Regulations.

Act 139 – Factories and Machinery Act, 1967 and it’s Regulations.

Act 302 – Petroleum (Safety Measures) Act, 1984 and its Regulations.

Act 366 – Poison Act, 1952 and its Regulations.

Act 149 – Pesticides Act, 1974 and it’s Regulations.

Act 207 – Explosive Act, 1957 and it’s Regulations.

Act 341 – Fire Services Act, 1988 and it’s Regulations.

Uniform Building by Laws, 1984

and others which may be related to your business.