Penang MTUC secretary K Veeriah described as puzzling the excuse cited by the ministry that the union had taken part in the 10 meetings held by the National Labour Advisory Council this year, as well as discussions with the technical committees.

He questioned whether attendance at meetings was tantamount to agreeing to the proposed amendments that were tabled by the minister and passed by Parliament.

Veeriah also said they were made to understand that no agreement was reached at the NLAC and that the deliberations, at the technical committees, was ongoing when the amendments were tabled in the Dewan Rakyat.

Last month, MTUC denied it had been consulted over labour law reforms including amendments to the IRA and accused Human Resources Minister M Kula Segaran of lying about consulting with stakeholders before tabling the amendments.

Veeriah went on to say that they found it “unacceptable” that Putrajaya has yet to ratify the International Labour Organisation Convention 87 despite the ministry championing international labour standards.

The convention, also known as C87, deals with the fundamental freedom of association of all workers, including migrants.