CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS (EMPLOYMENT) ACT 1966

Children and Young Persons (Employment) LAWS OF MALAYSIA REPRINT Act 350 CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS (EMPLOYMENT) ACT 1966 As at 1 October 2019 PUBLISHED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF LAW REVISION, MALAYSIA UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF THE REVISION OF LAWS ACT 1968 2019 1 2 Act 350 Laws of Malaysia CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS (EMPLOYMENT) ACT 1966 First enacted … … … … 1966 (Act No. 40 of 1966) Revised … … … … 1988 (Act 350 w.e.f 3 November 1988) Latest amendment made by Act A1586 which came into operation on … … … 1 February 2019 Previous Reprints First Reprint … … … 2001 Second Reprint … … … 2006 Children and Young Persons (Employment) 3 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 350 CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS (EMPLOYMENT) ACT 1966 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Section 1. 1a. Short title and application Interpretation EMPLOYMENT 2. Employment in which children and young persons may be engaged 4. Number of days work 3. 5. 6. The Minister may prohibit any child or young person from engaging or being engaged in any employment Hours of work of children Hours of work of young persons PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT 7. Employment connected with public entertainment INQUIRY INTO WAGES 8. (Deleted) MISCELLANEOUS 9. Administration and enforcement 10. Jurisdiction 9a. 11. 12. Offence by body corporate, etc. Prosecutions and right of audience Certificate of medical officer as to age 4 Laws of Malaysia Act 350 Section 13. Contractual capacity 15. Regulations 14. Penalty 15a. Power to amend Schedules 17. (Omitted) 16. 18. Application of certain provisions of the Employment Act 1955 and regulations made thereunder Saving First Schedule (Deleted) Second Schedule (Omitted) Third Schedule Fourth Schedule Fifth Schedule Children and Young Persons (Employment) 5 LAWS OF MALAYSIA Act 350 CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS (EMPLOYMENT) ACT 1966 An Act to regulate the employment of children and young persons. [1 October 1966, P.U. 356/1966] BE IT ENACTED by the Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong with the advice and consent of the Dewan Negara and Dewan Rakyat in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: Short title and application 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Children and Young Persons (Employment) Act 1966. (2) This Act shall apply only to the States of *Peninsular Malaysia. Interpretation 1a. (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires— “agricultural undertaking” means any work in which any person is employed under a contract of service for the purposes of agriculture or horticulture, the tending of domestic animals and poultry or the collection of the produce of any plants or trees, but does not include any work performed in a forest; * NOTE—All references to “West Malaysia” shall be construed as reference to “Peninsular Malaysia”–see the Interpretation (Amendment) Act 1997 [Act A996] subsection 5(2). 6 Laws of Malaysia Act 350 “child” means a person under the age of fifteen years; “contract of service” means any agreement, whether oral or in writing and whether express or implied, whereby a person agrees in accordance with the provisions of this Act to employ a child or young person and that child or young person agrees to serve him and includes an apprenticeship contract; “employ” and “employment” mean employment in any labour for the purposes of gain, whether the gain be to a child, young person or to any other person; “employer” means any person who has entered into a contract of service to employ any child or young person and includes the agent, manager or factor of such first-mentioned person; “entertainment” includes any exhibition or performance; and a person is deemed to take part in an entertainment when such person is employed in or connected with such entertainment whether as a performer, stage-hand or musician; “family” means a parent, sibling or guardian who has custody, of a child or young person; “guardian” in relation to child or young person, includes any person who, in the opinion of the court having cognizance of any case in relation to the child or young person or in which the child or young person is concerned, has for the time being the charge of or control over the child or young person; “light work” means any work performed by a child or young person which is not likely— (a) to be harmful to his health, mental, or physical capacity; or (b) to prejudice his attendance at school that includes any place which teaches any religion, his participation in vocational orientation or training programmes approved by the competent authority or his capacity to benefit from the instruction received; Children and Young Persons (Employment) 7 “Minister” means the Minister for the time being charged with responsibility for human resources; “public entertainment” means entertainment to which the public or any section of the public is admitted or in connection with which any charge, whether for admission or not, is made or at which any collection or subscription is received and includes performances for the making of films for public exhibition other than news films but does not include any entertainment given by the pupils of any school registered under the *Education Act 1961 [Act 43 of 1961] at or under the auspices of such school, or any entertainment promoted by a voluntary, social or welfare body which has been approved by the Director General; “vessel” includes any ship or boat or any other description of vessel used in navigation; “young person” means a person who has attained the age of fifteen years and under the age of eighteen years. (2) Other expression have the same meanings as in the Employment Act 1955 [Act 265] and the Weekly Holidays Act 1950 [Act 220]. EMPLOYMENT Employment in which children and young persons may be engaged 2. (1) For the purpose of this section, “hazardous work” means work specified in the Fourth Schedule. (1a) No child or young person shall be, or be required or permitted to be, engaged in any hazardous work, or any employment other than those specified in this section. * NOTE—The Education Act 1961 [Act 43 of 1961] has since been repealed by the Education Act 1996 [Act 550]–see section 155 of Act 550. 8 Laws of Malaysia Act 350 (1b) Notwithstanding subsection (1a), a young person may be engaged in any hazardous work with personal supervision if he is— (a) under an apprenticeship contract; or (b) undergoing a vocational training. (2) A child may be engaged in any of the following employments: (a) employment involving light work suitable to his capacity in any undertaking carried on by his family; (b) employment in any public entertainment, in accordance with the terms and conditions of a licence granted in that behalf under this Act; (c) employment requiring him to perform work approved or sponsored by the Federal Government or the Government of any State and carried on in any school, training institution or training vessel; and (d) employment as an apprentice under a written apprenticeship contract approved by the Director General with whom a copy of such contract has been filed. (2 a ) The age of admission to light work as specified in paragraph (2)(a) shall not be less than thirteen years. (2b) Notwithstanding subsections (2) and (3), no child or young person shall be, or be required or permitted to be, engaged in any employment specified in the Fifth Schedule. (3) A young person may be engaged in any of the following employments: (a) any employment mentioned in subsection (2); and in relation to paragraph (a) of that subsection any employment suitable to his capacity (whether or not the undertaking is carried on by his family); Children and Young Persons (Employment) 9 (b) (Deleted by Act A1586); (c) employment in any office, shop (including hotels, restaurants and stalls), godown, factory, workshop, store, boarding house, theatre, cinema or association; (d) employment in an industrial undertaking suitable to his capacity; and (e) employment on any vessel under the personal charge of his parent or guardian. (4) The Minister may, if he is satisfied that any employment (not mentioned in subsection (2) or subsection (3)) is not dangerous to life, limb, health, safety or morals, by order declare such employment to be an employment in which a child or young person may be, or permitted to be, engaged; and the Minister may in such order impose such conditions as he deems fit and he may at any time revoke or vary the order or may withdraw or alter such conditions. (5) No child or young person shall be, or be required or permitted to be, engaged in any employment contrary to the provisions of the Factories and Machinery Act 1967 [Act 139], the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 [Act 514] or the Electricity Supply Act 1990 [Act 447]. (6) (Deleted by Act A1586). The Minister may prohibit any child or young person from engaging or being engaged in any employment 3. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, the Minister may, in any particular case, by order prohibit any child or young person from engaging or from being engaged in any of the employments mentioned in section 2 if he is satisfied that having regard to the circumstances such employment would be detrimental to the interests of the child or young person, as the case may be. 10 Laws of Malaysia Act 350 Number of days of work 4. No child or young person engaged in any employment shall in any period of seven consecutive days be required or permitted to work for more than six days. Hours of work of children 5. (1) No child engaged in any employment shall be required or permitted— (a) to work between the hours of 8 o’clock in the evening and 7 o’clock in the morning; (b) to work for more than three consecutive hours without a period of rest of at least thirty minutes; (c) to work for more than six hours in a day or, if the child is attending school, for a period which together with the time he spends attending school, exceeds seven hours; or (d) to commence work on any day without having had a period of not less than fourteen consecutive hours free from work. (2) Paragraph (1)(a) shall not apply to any child engaged in employment in any public entertainment. Hours of work of young persons 6. (1) No young person engaged in any employment shall be required or permitted— (a) to work between the hours of 8 o’clock in the evening and 6 o’clock in the morning; (b) to work for more than four consecutive hours without a period of rest of at least thirty minutes; Children and Young Persons (Employment) 11 (c) to work for more than seven hours in any one day or, if the young person is attending school, for a period which together with the time he spends attending school, exceeds eight hours: Provided that if the young person is an apprentice under paragraph 2(2)(d), the period of work in any one day shall not exceed eight hours; or (d) to commence work on any day without having had a period of not less than twelve consecutive hours free from work. (2) Paragraph (1)(a) shall not apply to any young person engaged in employment in an agricultural undertaking or any employment in a public entertainment or on any vessel under paragraph 2(3)(e). PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT Employment connected with public entertainment 7. (1) No child or young person shall take part or be required or permitted to take part in any public entertainment unless there has been issued by the Director General of Labour or by such other Director General as may be authorized in writing in that behalf by the Director General of Labour to the person employing such child or young person a licence in that behalf; and the Director General may, in addition to such conditions or restrictions as may be prescribed from time to time under section 15, impose in respect of such licence (whether at the time the licence is issued or thereafter from time to time) such conditions as he deems fit. (2) No licence under subsection (1) shall be gr