At Jaya Tiasa, we believe our employees are our greatest asset. The health of our employees is directly linked to their productivity and satisfaction at work. We believe clear engagement with employees coupled with career development opportunities will improve personal performance, business productivity and product quality. We recognise the potential in each employee and the benefits of a diverse workforce.
The Group is committed in ensuring the dignity and rights of our workers are respected in line with the Malaysian Labour Law and the United Nations’ guiding principles on human rights. These commitments are outlined below:
• Practice of non-discrimination during recruitment, employment, dismissal or promotion regardless of gender, race, religion, marital status and political affiliation;
• Strict prohibition of any form of harsh and inhumane treatment, including sexual harassment, sexual abuse, corporal punishment, mental and physical coercion;
• Strengthening of mutual cooperation between worker and employer;
• Encourage open discussion and recognition;
• Improvement of workers’ health and safety levels;
• Respect the rights of the community in accordance with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Social Impact Assessments are conducted on local communities that are directly or indirectly affected by our business operations;
• Practice of zero tolerance on the use of child or forced labour, slavery or human trafficking in any of our operation sites and facilities;
• Adherence to our core values by our contractors and suppliers; and
• The passports of workers will be made available upon request and no workers will be retained against their will.
No incidences of forced or child labour have been found or reported.
To meet future challenges and remain competitive, we strive to be an attractive employer with the ability to retain the best people. With the competition for talents growing more intense, the following safeguarding measures were put in place:
• The conduct of road shows and placements of advertisements in local newspapers to encourage the local communities to be part of the Group;
• New recruits are given orientation and training;
• Employment and development of employees are based on individual skills, talent, experience and the behavioral attributes of a person;
• Remuneration pay package is tailored according to employee’s level of performance; and
• Same career progression opportunity for everyone who is competent and contribute to the success of the Group.
To mitigate the shortage of labour force during the pandemic and movement restrictions, we look towards retaining foreign workers (mainly from Indonesia) to take over the physically demanding works.
• All workers are covered under the purview of “Workers Minimum Standards of Housing and Amenities Act 1990”;
• All levy fees, visa applications and transportation costs are borne by us to reduce their financial burden;
• Only foreign workers with valid work permits are hired; and all statutory payments and just wages are made in a timely manner; and
• All foreign workers are covered under SOCSO or SKKPHA.
We have been compliant with the National Minimum Wages Order since it was first introduced by the Malaysian government in 2012. We ensure that all employees are adequately compensated for their work and that wage payments are made in a timely manner and are clearly acknowledged by the workers. In addition to the typical employee benefits, we also provide annual bonuses, medical and insurance coverage and EPF to eligible employees. Regular performance appraisals and evaluations are carried out to ensure high performing employees are rewarded and also, to promote motivation and performance upgrading for the rest.
Diversity brings strength and cultural understanding to an organization. In accordance with our Code of Conduct, equal employment opportunity is given to every employee regardless of religion, ethnicity, gender and other discriminatory factors.
We value, respect and leverage the unique contributions of people with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives to provide exceptional services to an equally diverse community.
There was no incident of discrimination and corrective action taken for the year.
Continuous improvement of the health and well-being of our employees are certainly one of our top priorities. Through our Sports and Recreation Club (SPARC), recreational events, sports activities and company functions are regularly organised throughout the year for our employees with the aim of promoting and fostering teamwork and rapport among employees as well as encouraging work-life balance and healthy living. We always encourage all our employees to participate in all SPARC programmes which include the annual dinner, festive gatherings, sports competitions, donation drives and more. However, for the past two and half years the pandemic woes and the movement restrictions have curtailed most of the face-to-face activities.
We fully recognise the right of children to education and have already set up a few kindergartens under the KEMAS project in our plantations. We are also in the midst of setting up the Community Learning Centres (CLCs) in our plantations. CLCs are built in collaboration with the Indonesian Consulate to provide education for the Indonesian children.
In addition, the welfare of our estate and mill workforce is provided for with quality quarters, playgrounds, recreational and medical facilities among others. We have also set up clinics to provide basic healthcare for our workforce as well as the local communities.
The education and training system is the main platform for human capital development intervention. To sustain and achieve goals, the workforce is optimized through comprehensive human capital development interventions to provide necessary knowledge, skills and competencies needed to work effectively.
Despite the pandemic and movement restrictions, we continue to enhance our employees’ skills and knowledge through signing them up to attend online training courses. All internal trainings were carried out under strict adherence to the Covid-19 Standard Operating Procedures.
Field training is also frequently organized to upgrade the technical and functional skills of workers at the operating units.
The Group continues to support the local communities associated with our operations through the offering of job opportunities, fair pay and by minimising all environmental and social impacts. We help to create direct employment for the local people and currently about 50% of the Malaysian staff at our mills and plantations are from the local communities.
Our employees are also encouraged to take part in community and charitable activities. Over the last 12 months, our efforts included donation of medical equipment to Sibu General Hospital and donation of proceeds from recycling to the Sibu Kidney Foundation.
In addition to this area of focus, our blood donation drives are conducted yearly to replenish the blood supplies of the local hospitals and blood banks.
The Group has, in FY22, contributed funding in cash and in-kind not just to our own workers affected by tragedies and losses but also towards enhancing the social well-being of the community through supporting initiatives related to educations, health care, arts and culture, sports, community development, the underprivileged, disability groups and more.
Safety and Health has always been our utmost priority. To safeguard the health, well-being and safety of our employees, the following precautions and measures were established:
• Promotion of a safe working culture through the conduct of safety briefings and safety awareness campaigns for both employees and contractors;
• Implementation of standardised health and safety program and policies across all the Group’s operations. These programs and policies are continuously reviewed, monitored and fully implemented;
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is provided for those working in environments exposed to hazards and risks. Full compliance with the use of PPE is mandatory and strictly monitored;
Mandatory and full compliance with the use of PPE
• Third party service recognised by Department of Occupational Safety & Health (DOSH) is engaged to perform workplace assessments on:
a) Chemical Health Risk Assessment (CHRA);
b) Noise Risk Assessment (NRA); and
c) Local Exhaust Ventilation (LEV) Inspection
• All of our foreign workers are registered and covered by SOCSO or SKKPHA;
• Regular safety education programs are conducted to enable employees to understand the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and to boost safety and health awareness and knowledge to work safely;
• Having safety and health committee in place and hold regular committee meetings and to encourage active employees’ participation in the meetings;
Regular holding of safety and health meetings
• Regular workplace safety inspections are carried out to ensure potential hazards are identified and corrected to prevent incidents, injuries and illnesses;
• Safety and warning signs are displayed everywhere on the sites to ensure staff and workers are well aware of the possible dangers and hazards in the working environment;
• All our CPO mills have clinics where workers can receive free healthcare;
• Medical and physical checkups and audiometric tests are regularly conducted for employees exposed to dangerous chemicals, pesticides and high noise levels;
• Regular inspections of the employees’ housing and welfare facilities are carried out to ensure that sanitation, health and drainage standards are maintained according to the Group’s policy; and
• Implementation of strict Covid-19 SOP throughout the Group such as the compulsory usage of face masks at the workplace including at the sites, providing face masks to all site staff, and providing hand sanitisers, disinfecting fogging machine and disinfectant solution to all offices.
In FY22, a total of RM295,913.78 had been spent on the provision of Rapid Antigen Test Kits, masks, disinfecting fogging machine and disinfectant solution to reduce the transmission of the virus and provide a safe workplace for our staff.
As mentioned above, during the reporting year, specific SOP and guidelines were implemented to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection among staff and workers. Some of the measures at our offices, estates, mills, timber camps and warehouses include:
• Providing masks to all site staff;
• Providing hand sanitisers at the entrances of offices;
• Requiring all staff and workers to undergo health screening, and in the event of quarantine, they are required to report and declare their status to the HR department;
• Developing detailed guidelines on handling staff and workers who are tested positive for Covid-19. The infected worker is required to undergo the mandatory quarantine period set by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and report to MOH via MySejahtera;
• Foreign workers are required to undergo a total of three (3) Rapid Antigen Tests. If the test results are negative, they are to work but live separately from other workers for a period of 10 days;
• Training, creating Covid-19 awareness and inculcating hygiene practices, which includes frequent hand washing and sanitization through the Group’s online portal;
• Conducting virtual meetings and webinars;
• Compulsory usage of face masks at all work offices and sites; and
• Disinfection/sanitization of workplaces twice daily.
Between July 2021 and early 2022, we conducted a series of Covid-19 vaccination drive with the aim to vaccinate all our employees, especially the migrant workers against the virus. During that period, more than 5,000 doses of vaccine were administered to our employees at our mills and plantations.
The Group devotes continuous efforts in accident prevention by conducting “Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment and Risk Control (HIRARC)” on all our operations. With HIRARC, we are able to identify, assess/measure and minimize the hazards and risks of any workplace and its activities.
Every accident is formally investigated to determine the root cause and to prevent the recurrence of such incidents. The details and conclusion of the investigation are included in the Accident Investigation Report (AIR). All the occupational injuries, diseases and poisoning in the workplace will be reported to the nearest Department of Occupational Safety & Health (DOSH) office within seven (7) working days.
Apart from all the control measures, the management has put in place, various SOP, trainings and refresher courses such as firefighting skills, fire drills, first aid, emergency response plan, chemical handling and so forth which are being introduced to the employees on a regular basis.
No.1-9, Pusat Suria Permata, Lorong Upper Lanang 10A, 96000 Sibu, Sarawak, Malaysia
T. +6084-213 255
F. +6084-213 855
Copyright © Jaya Tiasa Holdings Berhad 2023
