On 2 March, AMCHAM held a briefing session on the amendments that were made to the Industrial Relations Act 1967, which came into effect on 1 January 2021. For a better understanding of the amendments and the impact it brings, two expert legal speakers were brought on board for this session.

Mr. Leonard Yeoh, Partner and Head of Dispute Resolution and Employment & Industrial Relations practice groups at Tay & Partners was on hand to provide an overview of the current changes to the Act, what the significant changes are, how it affects the employers and employees and what the new penalties are.

Mr. Vishnu Jeevapragasan, Head of Legal & Industrial Relations at ManpowerGroup Malaysia then provided insights into the key changes and what practical steps an organization can take to manage these changes. He provided examples from recent cases and their outcome after the amendments were made.

Attendees had the opportunity to raise legal questions and gain greater clarification from the guest speakers. Overall a very useful session to better understand the changes to the Industrial Act.

At Xylem  Water Solutions Malaysia Sdn. Bhd, we embrace responsible consumption and production. At our office in Shah Alam, consumable items at the pantry are mostly sourced from reliable producers who embrace the reuse, recycle and sustainable products such as Tesco Malaysia where most of their in-house brand consumable such as Tesco sugar, Tesco tea bag, Tesco, Tesco disinfectant wipes. Food waste at our pantry such as coffee beans from our coffee machine is collected and by the end of the week used as a compost material for our plants in our office surrounding area.

We also practice sustainable living at the workplace whereby regular plogging activities are carried out around our office surrounding area. Employees will gather at the office as early as 8.30am to start collecting rubbish around our office area and the compound area outside of our office. This will help ensure that litter and rubbish does not end up in our drains which in turn clogs up the surrounding areas leading to unwanted flooding.

KUALA LUMPUR, 26 February 2021 – Premier global nutrition company, Herbalife Nutrition, recently released findings from the 2020 Asia Pacific Healthy Aging Survey, which revealed that Malaysian consumers have a clear vision of what healthy aging means to them, more than four in 10 consumers (44 precent) had the confidence to age healthily, with the fear of falling ill due to lower immunity as their top worry.

To shed light into consumers’ aging-related fears, concerns, confidence levels and actions, the survey polled equal numbers of Generation Z (18 – 23 years), Millennials (24 – 39 years), Generation X (40 – 55 years) and Boomers+ (55 years and above) in 11 markets including Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

“This is the third edition of our survey designed to uncover concerns about aging across demographic groups and markets in Asia Pacific, the region with the highest average life expectancy in the world,” said Steven Chin, General Manager and Director, Herbalife Nutrition Malaysia. “The findings showed that many people worry about falling ill due to lower immunity as they age – a likely result of their changing health concerns due to the ongoing pandemic. Additionally, we also observed that consumers in Malaysian market, where an aging population is particularly notable, have higher levels of confidence in their ability to age healthily compared to their Southeast Asia counterparts.”

“According to the Department of Statistics Malaysia, the country is expected to become an aging society by 2030. With the estimation that 7.2 per cent of the population will be 65 and older by next year[1], healthy aging should be addressed and articulated to protect the elderly by implementing preventive public health measures such as promoting a healthy lifestyle. Having this in mind, we should deepen our awareness about the need to take steps towards healthy aging early on in life,” he added.

Defining Healthy Aging

When asked to define healthy aging in more tangible terms, Malaysian consumers painted a positive picture. Respondents shared that healthy aging is about not suffering from any chronic or acute illness (62 percent), being mentally active and sharp (59 percent), not being a burden to their family as they age (52 percent), living a free and independent life (51 percent) and being physically active (49 percent).

“Healthy aging is more than just getting old with limited ailments. It is about ensuring a good quality of life in terms of physical, spiritual, social and mental well-being – and this can be achieved through kickstarting our healthy aging journey early with positive lifestyle changes,” added Steven.

Aging-Related Concerns

Over half (64 percent) of Malaysian consumers believe that discussions on how to age healthily should begin between the ages of 30 and 49. The most common reason given for postponing discussions about aging was that they are still young, followed by the prioritization of their present health and lifestyle.

For those who are concerned about aging, two-thirds (64 percent) of consumers started to have concerns between the age of 30 and 59, with bone- and joint-related issues topping the list of specific health concerns, followed by eye-related and heart-related issues.

Fear of Aging

Only 28 percent of Asia Pacific consumers expressed confidence in their ability to age healthily. The survey results indicate that consumers in Malaysia (44 percent) were generally more confident.

Across the different demographic groups, younger consumers such as the Boomers+ (57 percent), Millennials (43 percent) and Generation Z (41 percent) displayed greater confidence in their ability to age healthily as compared to their older Generation X (39 percent) counterpart.

The fear of falling ill due to lower immunity emerged as the top aging-related worry.

• Two in five (36 percent) respondents worry about falling ill due to lower immunity as they age.
• One in five (24 percent) worry that visible signs of aging will change their appearance.
• One in ten (10 percent) fear that they might become less independent as the body becomes weaker.

Regarding the potential aging-related effects that consumers will experience:

• 57 percent of respondents believe that they would experience a decrease in mental acuity;
• 43 percent believe that they would most likely suffer from chronic or acute illnesses or ailments;
• 38 percent believe that they will participate in fewer physical activities and be physically weaker as they grow older.

Taking Steps Towards Healthy Aging

Nonetheless, the majority of Malaysian consumers understand the importance of healthy aging, with nearly nine in 10 consumers (88 percent) having taken steps to help age healthily. The steps taken include:

• Making better nutrition choices (79 percent).
• Engaging in more regular physical activities (56 percent).
• Engaging in mentally-stimulating activities or hobbies (54 percent).
• Going for more regular health check-ups (50 percent).
• Taking supplements that promote healthy aging (48 percent).

Across the demographic groups, a larger proportion (93 percent) of older consumers such as the Boomer+ have taken steps towards healthy aging as compared to their younger Generation X (87 percent), Millennial (87 percent) and Generation Z counterparts (87 percent).

“While growing older is inevitable, active steps can be taken to help us age healthily. Simply by having the right nutritional habits accompanied by regular physical activities, we are on the right track for healthy aging,” said Steven.

[1] http://healthyageing.org/index.php/are-we-ready-for-an-ageing-malaysia/

View Infographic of Overcoming the Fear of Aging

Following the announcement by the Government on the COVID-19 Immunisation Programme, detailed guides and steps have been released on how you can apply for the vaccination. The information below is abstracted from the Special Committee on Ensuring Access to COVID-19 Vaccine Supply (JKJAV) official website and social media pages.

New

If you are a COVID-19 vaccine recipient abroad, you can now continue applying for digital certificates for COVID-19 vaccination through Helpdesk MySejahtera by choosing Option N.

If you received your COVID-19 vaccination abroad, you may now apply directly for the COVID-19 vaccination digital certificate via MySejahtera Helpdesk by choosing Option N.

• How to apply for the COVID-19 Vaccination Exemption Digital Certificate for patients who cannot be vaccinated due to medical issues. Only individuals with absolute contraindication will be granted the exemption.

Click here to Know Your Status in the COVID-19 Chain

Registration for COVID-19 Vaccination

Here’s how you can register for COVID-19 vaccination on the MySejahtera app:

• English Version
• BM Version

Vaccination process through the MySejahtera application can be viewed here on page 18  to 20 of the National COVID-19 Immunisation Programme handbook. The handbook (in both BM and English) can be downloaded from the official JKJVA Webpage.

Download the Handbook Here:

• English Version
• BM Version

MySejahtera is updating everyone who has registered for vaccinations. Users will start seeing displays like this (see image below) starting 4 March. If anyone who has registered but aren’t seeing a this display, no need to re-register. Your previous registration has been recorded. But if you have re-registered and see the date displayed is the same as the re-registration date, don’t worry, appointments can still be made according to the registration date made originally.

Preparations for COVID-19 Vaccination

Appointments will be set when the phase you belong to is about to begin. Three things to prepare for before being vaccinated:

Push payment fraud has become one of the fastest-growing cybercrimes. It happens when fraudsters deceive individuals by impersonating a business and lead them to make payments to a bank account controlled by the fraudsters. Whilst fraud cases of this nature are often being reported, the identity of the fraudster is not always known. This leaves victims with great uncertainty as they may not know how to seek redress against “Persons Unknown”.

This article by Azmi & Associates covers Malaysia’s first legal remedy against “Persons Unknown” .

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