Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) secretary-general G Rajasekaran was ready to step down from his post but changed his mind upon learning of N Siva Subramaniam's nomination as a challenger for the key post.

"Personally, I had already told my supporters that I was stepping down. But the moment Siva was nominated for the secretary-general post, I just had to reconsider my decision," he said, referring to the recently-concluded election.

"My supporters demanded to know if I really wanted to hand over the MTUC affairs to someone widely perceived as a government spokesperson. I couldn't abandon ship... not just yet."

He said there were allegations that he was siding with the group aligned to general-secretary J Solomon in the National Union of Bank Employees (NUBE) leadership crisis.

"I've been accused of supporting Solomon's group. Yes, I do support them... but only because they had immediately agreed to our suggestion for a fresh poll to resolve the three-year issue," he explained.

'The other group has firmly refused to consider the proposal. So, how can I support those least concerned about the welfare of 30,000 members who are suffering as a result of an expired collective agreement for over two years?"

Rajasekaran said it was imperative to resolve the NUBE crisis within six months.

'This is what we hope to achieve within a shorter period and tomorrow's (Thursday) meeting with Human Resources Minister Dr Fong Chan On is the first step."

On Dec 30, Rajasekaran retained his post with a 95-vote majority to keep Siva at bay.

Comfortable majority

The 450-strong delegates at the triennial MTUC election in Petaling Jaya also saw 11 new faces voted in among the 17 principal officer-bearers. The inclusion of MTUC youth and women wing leaders is automatic, bringing the total to 19.

A major upset was the ouster of MTUC president Zainal Rampak by fifth-time contender Syed Shahir Syed Mohamud by a 47-vote majority.

"Syed won with a comfortable majority. His victory was not secured by the 27 votes from the NUBE as he would still have won by 20 votes even if the NUBE delegates had not participated,"
he said, noting that there was much less publicity this time around compared to the previous election period.

"This is the first time we are witnessing a huge change within the old guard. My reading is that members moved for change because there were very few improvements prompted by a lack of proper direction."

Rajasekaran said delegates were asked for a mandate to carry out the commitments made earlier and in the 17 resolutions.

He said some were concerned that the Syed Shahir-Rajasekaran combination meant a more confrontational approach.

"That's not the case but we would definitely be more persistent."

Change way of operation

Priority areas include arresting the decline in dividends declared by the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) in recent years, outsourcing by banks, dispute resolution and minimum wage.

He said the MTUC has to change the way it operates and this is where the new leadership's role becomes crucial.

"There is a real need to follow through with all the issues raised at the tripartite meetings. If we allow the government or employers to think that we are only to be tolerated until the initial excitement dies down, then the MTUC has failed," he said.

"We need to find ways of getting things done via sustained pressure on the ministry. At the same time, we will be persistent in uncovering union-busting activities which is increasingly favoured by employers."

Rajasekaran was gravely concerned over the lack of knowledge and awareness of trade union rights among the workforce.

"It is important because globalisation does pose a greater threat, particularly to white-collar workers.

"One way to deal with this is to remind the government of its obligation under the fundamental principles of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) convention which it ratified in 1998.

"We will try to deal with it here but if nothing changes, then we will be forced to apply international pressure through the ILO," he added.

Expressing concern over the free rein enjoyed by investors in dealing with workers, the veteran unionist said the government is slowly compromising on basic rights in order to remain competitive.

"The intense competition for foreign dollars within the region has led governments, including Malaysia, to make certain concessions including relaxing laws and lax enforcement."

More dynamic approach

He said the trend was also to engage workers on weekly contracts where they signed a "contract for service" instead of a "contract of service".

"Such contracts have no security of tenure, no EPF and no medical benefits, among other things."

Therefore, he said the MTUC will have to be more vocal and take a "more dynamic approach" with the help of the new team.

"Changes won't happen overnight but we have to start somewhere and having more new faces on board is a good start."

Rajasekaran said that towards the end of last year, the MTUC had conducted rallies nationwide and met with grassroots members to explain the situation and challenges ahead.

"To be fair, Fong has addressed some of the long-standing issues over the last six months such as, for example, increasing the manpower to clear industrial relations case backlog.

"But the issue of recognition of trade unions remains a sore point and a danger to our entire labour movement," he said.

Rajasekaran said Fong had also set up two industrial court consultative committees, one for law reform and the other to enhance procedures in order to reduce delays and cut down on the number of postponements by all parties.

Another improvement, he said, was to increase the number of industrial relations personnel in Putrajaya, Selangor and Kuala Lumpur to speed up the handling of case backlog.