What Changed When This Reform Took Effect
You want to know whether the rules covering your job changed recently.
A reform that took effect a few years ago quietly reshaped who this Act protects, and it still trips up people reading older explanations of it.
What did this reform actually change?
The amendments extended statutory coverage to all employees, regardless of wage, once they came into force on 1 January 2023.1
Before that date, several protections only applied up to a set salary level. That general limit was removed for most of the Act.
Does a wage limit still apply anywhere?
Yes, in one specific part. Rules on working hours, overtime and rest days still apply only to employees earning up to RM4,000 a month.1
Everything else in the Act now reaches employees regardless of salary, which is the part most people misunderstand when quoting older material.
What else moved alongside wider coverage?
The same reforms capped the normal work week at 45 hours, and strengthened protection around pregnancy, including a ban on dismissing someone because she is pregnant.2
These are meaningful changes if your situation touches hours, overtime or a pregnancy-related dismissal.
Does this reform decide whether a dismissal was fair?
No. These amendments concern entitlements under the Employment Act. Whether a dismissal itself needed just cause or excuse is a separate question under a different law.
A worker can rely on these updated entitlements and pursue an unfair dismissal claim at the same time, since the two issues are not mutually exclusive.
What should you check today?
Note the date your situation happened, since anything after 1 January 2023 falls under the updated rules rather than the older version.
If your case involves pregnancy or a dismissal, read maternity protection next, and check your own filing window on the deadline calculator.
Tell us when your employment situation happened, and we can explain whether the older or the updated version of this Act applies to you.
Common questions
When did these amendments actually take effect?
They came into force on 1 January 2023, following amendments passed in 2022. If your situation happened after that date, the updated rules apply.
Does the wage-based limit still exist anywhere in this Act?
Yes, for one specific part. Provisions on hours, overtime and rest days still apply only up to a set monthly wage, even though general coverage was widened.
Do these amendments affect my unfair dismissal claim?
Not directly. These changes concern statutory entitlements. A dismissal's fairness is assessed separately under the Industrial Relations Act and its own process.
How do I know if an article about this Act is still accurate?
Check whether it mentions the 2023 reforms. An explanation written before that date may describe coverage or hours rules that have since changed.
Sources
- Employment Act 1955 amendments came into force on 1 January 2023, extending coverage to all employees regardless of wage, while Part XII provisions on hours, overtime and rest days remain limited to employees earning up to RM4,000 a month. Malay Mail, Employment Act 1955 Amendment 2022
- The 2022 amendments set a maximum 45 hour work week, and the reforms strengthened maternity protection, including a prohibition on terminating an employee because she is pregnant. Malay Mail, Employment Act 1955 Amendment 2022
Keep reading
Tell us when your employment situation happened, and we can explain whether the older or the updated version of this Act applies to you.