PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) has reminded employers to take a firm stand against employees taking excessive sick leaves.
MEF president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said that sick leaves can financially burden businesses and hamper companies from achieving their full potential, according to a report by The Star.
Syed said that MEF had calculated that workers’ sick leaves cost employers RM5.05 billion in 2022, which is based on the amount involved in workers’ salaries (those that took sick leaves), outpatient clinical costs and replacement costs of staff on sick leave based on overtime payments.
“Employers need to establish policies and educate employees about the consequences of them taking sick leave.
“Employers should also put in place preventive measures such as investing in proper sanitation of the workplace, offering free vaccination and supporting workplace wellness programmes,” he said,
He added that some companies have accommodated recreational facilities and other programmes to promote staff wellness.
Syed also noted that even though some companies provide clear sick leave policies to employees, staff who take excessive sick leaves should be made aware of the consequences as well.
He said, for instance, employees who take sick days over the allocated amount may be subjected to severe administrative action, including dismissal.
Meanwhile, the MEF president said that some employers might offer certain incentives to those who do not take a lot of sick leaves such as recognition for taking minimum sick leaves or financially rewarding employees, compensating for the unused sick leaves.
He clarified that workers who felt acknowledged and needed were least likely to use their sick days.
Meanwhile, employees who issue fake medical certificates (MC) will be severely punished by law, Syed stressed.
“Employers have always viewed fake MCs as major misconduct, and employees found to be submitting fake MCs will normally be dismissed.
“There were also instances where employees’ action of submitting fake MCs were reported to the authorities and some of these cases ended up as criminal cases in court, where the court imposed both fine and imprisonment,” he added.
It is noted that the number of sick leaves taken has decreased during the Covid-19 pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 compared to 2019, pre-pandemic.
“The number of sick leaves dropped by about 50% and 40% for 2020 and 2021 respectively, compared to the number of sick leaves taken in 2019.
“This is possibly due to the fact that during the movement control order (MCOs) in 2020 and 2021, many employees were staying home so there was no necessity for them to go on sick leave,” he added.
