KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia’s Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri R. Ramanan has dismissed calls for a new law to protect foreign domestic workers, saying stronger amendments to existing legislation would be more appropriate.

He said changes to the Employees Provident Fund Act 1991 (Act 452) could ensure domestic workers are formally recognised as employees and placed under mandatory protection.

Ramanan said current laws — namely the Employment Act, the Sabah Labour Ordinance (Sabah Chapter 67) and the Sarawak Labour Ordinance (Sarawak Chapter 76) — provide only limited safeguards for foreign domestic workers.

He said these protections are largely confined to a 14-day termination notice and the requirement for employers to notify the Labour Department upon employment or termination.

“Additional protections, including wage rates and working hours, are implemented through memoranda of understanding (MoUs) between the government and relevant parties.

“Foreign domestic workers are also covered under the Lindung Worker scheme under the Employees' Social Security Act, which mandates registration and compulsory contributions by employers and domestic workers, including coverage under the employment injury scheme,” he told Berita Harian.

Ramanan was responding to a media report stating that about 100,675 foreign domestic workers are not registered under the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).

The issue was highlighted by Indonesian Migrant Domestic Workers Association (Petimig) chairman Uli Rini, despite the Employees Provident Fund (Amendment) Bill being passed in March to extend EPF protection to foreign workers on par with Malaysians.

Ramanan said the ministry maintained that a new Bill was unnecessary, in line with the reform approach under the Iltizam Act.

“This Act emphasises the evaluation and improvement of existing legislation,” he said.

He added that engagement sessions were crucial to ensure effective enforcement on the ground.

“These include individual sessions with agencies and employers to obtain specific feedback and identify enforcement challenges at the ground level, as well as sessions through the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC) to gather views from stakeholders.

“The outcomes of these sessions will guide the direction, funding requirements and official policies based on the principles of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention No. 189 — the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 — and will be comprehensively examined as part of the ongoing legal reform review,” he added.