5 Ways That Singapore And Malaysia Employment Act Differ

An employment act is a set of labour laws that employers and employees need to adhere to. It outlines basic terms and conditions of work including requirements for termination of contract, payment of wages, rest days, and maternity benefits. 

In Malaysia, there’s the Employment Act 1955 and in Singapore, the Employment Act 1968. 

When an employer hires an employee, they sign a contract that states the terms and conditions of the job such as remuneration and work hours. These terms and conditions may vary depending on the company but they should all be aligned to the baseline conditions stated in the employment act. 

Who Is Covered Under The Employment Act? 

The Singapore Employment Act covers local and foreign employees with the exception of seafarer, domestic worker and statutory board employee or civil servant. Employees hired as full time, part time, temporary and contract workers are all covered by the act. 

Meanwhile, the Malaysia Employment Act covers all employees who enter a contract of service with an employer. However, some sections of the employment act may not apply to workers with a wage of RM4,000 and above per month as well as domestic employees.    

The Malaysia Employment Act 1955 and Singapore Employment Act 1968 do share some similarities. For instance, both employment acts denote that wage should be paid to employees within seven days after the last day of wage period.  

However, there are several notable differences between these two employment acts.   

#1 Shorter Notice Of Termination In Singapore 

For the Malaysia Employment Act, the minimum notice period is as per below: 

• Four weeks’ notice for employees who worked for less than two years  

• Six weeks’ notice for employees who worked for two years or more but less than five years 
• Eight weeks’ notice for employees who worked for five years or more 

The Singapore Employment Act dictates that the minimum notice period for employees should be: 

• One day’s notice for employees who worked for less than 26 weeks  
• One week’s notice for employees who worked for 26 weeks or more but less than two years 

• Two weeks’ notice for employees who worked for two years or more but less than five years 
• Four weeks’ notice for employees who worked for five years or more 

Under the Singapore Employment Act, the length of notice section covers employment period as short as less than five months whereby only a day’s notice is required. Do note however that often, workers would likely have a minimum notice period that is longer than the minimum notice period.      

The minimum notice period for termination is shorter in Singapore at four weeks for employees who’ve worked for five years or more while an eight weeks’ notice is required in Malaysia for the same employment time. 

Both employee and employer are required to give a notice of termination so each party has ample time to make necessary preparations. Unless the notice period is stated in the contract in writing, it will follow the minimum time length stipulated by the act.   

#2 Salary Deductions Employers Can Make Differs 

Employers in Singapore can make salary deductions on account of CPF contributions and employees’ absence at work. The deduction for absence of work shall not however be larger than the gross salary paid to the employee.  

Although Employee Provident Fund (EPF) contribution is not included as a justifiable deduction in the Malaysia Employment Act, it is mandated that employees contribute to the retirement fund through monthly salary deductions. 

A Malaysian employer requires a written consent by workers for payments with regards to the purchase of shares. Meanwhile, its Singaporean counterpart needs to have employees’ written consent for payments that go to housing and amenities supplied by the employer. 

Here’s a breakdown of the different and similar deductions:   

	Deductions	Deductions with employee’s request
Malaysia Employment Act 1955	Overpayment of wages   Indemnity due to the employer by the employee   Recovery of advances of wages   Deductions authorised by any other written law	Payment to a registered trade union or co-operative thrift and loan society   Payments for any shares of the employer’s business offered for sale by the employer and purchased by the employee
Singapore Employment Act 1968	Absence from work   Damage to or loss of goods or money entrusted to an employee due to the employee’s neglect or default  Recovery of any advance, loan or unearned employment benefit or for the adjustment of any overpayment of salary  Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions  Any other prescribed deductions	House accommodation supplied by the employer  Amenities and services supplied by the employer  Payment to any cooperative society   Any deduction made with the employee’s written consent

 

#3 Lesser Weekly Work Hours In Singapore  

Employees in Singapore are not allowed to work for more than 44 hours a week while the stipulated weekly work hours in Malaysia are 48 hours, which is four hours more.  

On the other hand, employees in Malaysia are privy to a leisure period of no less than 30 minutes after five hours of continuous work while in Singapore, workers can enjoy a break after six hours of continuous work, which is one hour more.  

An employee is not allowed to work for more than a stipulated period of time for the benefit of his or her well-being. 

	Work Hours	Break
Malaysia Employment Act 1955	Not more than 8 hours a day or more than 48 hours  a week	No consecutive work for 5 hours without a leisure period that is no less than 30 minutes
Singapore Employment Act 1968	Not more than 8 hours in a day or more than 44 hours in one week	Not more than 6 consecutive hours without a period of leisure

 

#4 More Leave Days For Longer Serving Staff In Malaysia  

Employees in Singapore and Malaysia enjoy paid leave days including annual leave for personal matters, sick leave and hospitalisation leave. The number of leave days one gets depends on the length of service. The longer you’ve worked at a company, the more leave days you’re entitled to. 

For example, in Malaysia, employees enjoy a minimum annual leave of 8 days. However, if they work in the same company for two years and more, they will get more leave entitlement – a minimum of 12 days. Once they completed five years of service at the same company, they will get a minimum annual leave of 16 days.  

Meanwhile, Singaporean employees get a minimum of seven days for annual leave. Every year of continuous service at the same company following that will earn them an additional leave day, capped at 14 days. 

	Annual Leave	Sick Leave	Hospitalisation Leave
Malaysia Employment Act 1955	8 days for employees who worked for less than 2 years    12 days for employees who worked for 2 years or more but less than 5 years    16 days for employees who worked for 5 years or more	14 days a year for employees who worked for less than 2 years    18 days a year for employees who worked for 2 years or more but less than 5 years    22 days a year for employees who worked for 5 years or more	60 days a year
Singapore Employment Act 1968	7 days for the first 12 months of continuous service with the same employer    An additional 1 day for every subsequent 12 months of continuous service with the same employer    A maximum of 14 days of paid annual leave	5 days a year for employees who worked for at least 3 months but less than 4 months    14 days a year for employees who worked for more than 6 months	60 days a year for employees who worked for more than 6 months or the aggregate of 14 days plus the number of days on which the employee is hospitalised, whichever is lesser    15 days a year for employees who worked for at least 3 months but less than 4 months or   the aggregate of 5 days plus the number of days on which the employee is hospitalised, whichever is lesser

 

There are notable differences in leave benefits for Malaysian and Singaporean workers. For Singaporean employees, the number of annual leave days increases with each year at the same company until it hits a maximum of 14 days.  

Meanwhile, in Malaysia, the number of annual leave days increases after the employee has accumulated a length of employment of two years and once again when the length of service hits five years, running up to 16 days. 

For sick leave, Singaporean employees who worked for more than six months get 14 days a year while those who worked for three months and less than four months are awarded five days of sick leave a year. Malaysian employees are entitled to sick leave ranging from 14 days to 22 days a year with the number of days being increased once they hit a length of service of two years and five years. 

In Malaysia, hospitalisation leave for all employees amount to 60 days whereas in Singapore, hospitalisation leave amounts to 60 days for employees who worked more than six months and 15 for those who worked between three months and less than four months.   

#5 More Maternity And Paternity Leave Days In Singapore 

This year, the Malaysia Employment Act has been amended to enhance maternity benefits and introduce paternity benefits. Women employees are given a total of 98 days of consecutive maternity leave which is 38 days more before the amendment.  

New fathers also now can enjoy paid paternity leave of seven consecutive days for each confinement, limited to five no matter the number of spouses.    

For those working in Singapore, new mothers get 112 days of paid maternity leave when they meet the following requirements.  

 Source 

Meanwhile, fathers enjoy two weeks of paid paternity leave with the eligibility requirements below checked. 

 

 Source 

Verdict: Do You Prefer More Annual Leave And Sick Leave Or More Maternity Leave?  

The Singapore Employment Act and Malaysia Employment Act serve to protect the foundational rights of employees at work.  

In Singapore, employees work up to 44 hours a week while Malaysian employees are allowed to work up to 48 hours a week, which is four hours longer.  

Singaporean employees enjoy longer maternity and paternity leave than their Malaysian counterparts. 

Meanwhile, annual leave and sick leave benefits for employees in Malaysia increase with their length of service. This will encourage Malaysian employees to stay in a company longer so that they can enjoy greater benefits. 

	Work Hours	Annual Leave	Sick Leave	Maternity Leave/ Paternity Leave	Notice of Termination
Malaysia Employment Act 1955	Not more than 48 hours   a week	8 – 16 days	14- 22 days	98 days/7 days	4 – 8 weeks
Singapore Employment Act 1968	Not more than 44 hours a week	7 – 14 days	5 – 14 days	112 day/ 2 weeks	1 day – 4 weeks

 

 

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