Malaysia Malaysia, Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Act 2022 came into effect on June 1, 2024

Two related regulations were also promulgated, and the Factories and Machinery Act 1967 was repealed

Malaysia Occupational Safety and Health
2 May 2024  HIROSE Nao  HIROSE Nao (EnviX, Ltd.)
Malaysia, Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Act 2022 came into effect on June 1, 2024

On April 2, 2024, Malaysia promulgated a notice that the enforcement date of the Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Act 2022, which amended the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994, was June 1, 2024. This Act was promulgated on March 16, 2022, but has not yet come into force. In addition to the Occupational Safety and Health (Plant Requiring Certificate of Fitness) Regulations 2024 and the Occupational Safety and Health (Licensed Person) Order 2024 based on the Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Act 2022, a notice of the enforcement date of the Factories and Machinery (Repeal) Act 2022, which repealed the Factories and Machinery Act 1967, was also promulgated. The effective date of all these laws and regulations is June 1, 2024.

 

Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Act 2022

The main amendments to the Act as an employer are as follows. It will enter into force on June 1, 2024, including the following:

  • When installing and operating a designated plant, obtain approval from the Director-General of the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) and issue a Certificate of Fitness (see rules below).
  • One occupational safety and health coordinator shall be appointed at workplaces where the appointment of a safety and health officer is not required and where there are five or more workers.
  • A person who carries out the activities specified in Appendix 5 (installation, operation, dismantling, repair, etc. of a plant, medical surveillance, evaluation of exposure to hazardous chemicals, noise, etc.) shall be registered as a competent person.
  • Designated workers must participate in occupational safety and health training (details are stipulated by separate laws and regulations and have not been announced at this time).

 

Occupational Safety and Health (Plant Requiring Certificate of Fitness) Regulations 2024

In this regulation, three points are specified as plants that require a Certificate of Fitness: steam boilers, pressure vessels, and lifting machinery. To install these plants, information on the design of the plant is submitted to the Director General of DOSH, and an inspection of the plant is carried out by the licensed person designated by the authority. With this, a Certificate of Fitness is issued, and its validity period is 15 months. In addition, in order to renew the expiry date, it is necessary to undergo a periodic inspection before the expiry of the Certificate of Fitness, and the renewal period is also 15 months. In addition, this regulation also stipulates obligations during plant operation.

 

Occupational Safety and Health (Licensed Person) Order 2024

The licensed person who carries out the inspection of the plant upon issuance of the above Certificate of Fitness shall be designated by the Director-General of DOSH in accordance with this regulation. In addition to the obligations as a licensed person, these regulations specify items to be confirmed when inspecting the plant.

 

Repeal of the Factories and Machinery Act 1967

This Act has provisions that overlap with the contents of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994, and is scheduled to be repealed for the sake of consistency of laws and regulations.

 

(EnviX comment)
However, there is no clear provision on whether various regulations and orders based on this Act will be repealed at the same time, and it is considered that it will continue to be effective until the repeal of the regulations and orders is formally announced.

 

 

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Reference

Author / Responsibility

HIROSE Nao

Researcher, Research & Consulting Dept. EnviX Ltd.

Business Performance

In charge of Southeast Asia for managing information on the environmental regulations.

Background

BA, Human Life and Environmental Sciences, Ochanomizu University

HIROSE Nao