August 24, 2020, Wisma MTUC
MTUC in collaboration with Solidarity Center has successfully organized the forum of Handling of Trade Dispute – Impact of COVID 19 & CBA Training post COVID 19. The program was officiated by Dato Abdul Halim Bin Mansor-MTUC President. Among the panellists present at this forum were Mr. Mohd Nizar Bin Zakaria-Director of Reinstatement of Work-Section 20 Division, Putrajaya with his officers, Mrs. Nora Azmani and Mrs. Radzilah Mohamad. Meanwhile, a representative from SOCSO was represented by Mr. Wazid bin Zaidon-Benefits & Employment Insurance System. A total of 14 male participants and a female representative from various trade unions were also present as participants in the program. Brother Zul Thye as the moderator in the forum was also assisted by Brother Rudy as the presenter for the second session and also Brother Fitri Amzah.
Dato Abdul Halim welcomed all panellists and participants in this program. He hopes that all participants present can use this opportunity to increase their knowledge in governing their respective unions. His experience as a union leader has been shared. Emphasis on the quality of a leader to provide the best service and share knowledge with union members is also explained to all present. All participants and employees are reminded to be proficient in the existing Labour Acts such as the Employment Act 1955, Industrial Relations Act 1967, related SOCSO act and also various ILO conventions. This can ensure that the union leader is knowledgeable and needs to be shared for all employees.
The forum was conducted in a fairly organized atmosphere and provided a lot of knowledge to all participants. Encik Mohd Nizar from the Industrial Relations Department provided a lot of information, especially when we handle cases under Section 20 and also during reconciliation sessions. Many participants asked him questions during the question and answer session. Participants also did not miss asking various questions to Mr. Wazid from SOCSO. Mr. Wazid explained a lot about what an Employment Insurance System is and how it is implemented. Various other schemes introduced by SOCSO were also explained to all present.
At the end of the program session, Brother J Solomon-MTUC Secretary-General was present to give a speech adjourning the program. In his speech, he thanked all those present and were happy with the way the program was conducted. According to him, this program is quite different from previous training or workshops, where many sessions are interactive and actively conducted through the involvement of all participants.
In this Post COVID 19, all union leaders are reminded to increase their knowledge in line with new norms for the sake of good union governance. Taking the opportunity, he reminded 3 things to all when preparing the Collective Agreement proposal. Among them is, union leaders need to understand and be skilled in understanding the Company Account Statement. The second is the need to improve “negotiation techniques” during negotiations of collective agreements conducted with employers, especially in the increasingly challenging world of digitization. And the third is when MTUC as the labour centre, who always provide knowledge to the leaders, then the responsibility of the leaders to channel and share the available knowledge to all members of their respective unions. This can directly benefit all the members.
The program ended with the singing of the MTUC Solidarity song and a photo session.
