The Employment Act 1955 (Amendment) 2022 applies to film industry employees but the Finas has no say in its implementation, said the head of Malaysia’s film authority.
National Film Development Corporation (Finas) chief executive officer Md Nasir Ibrahim explained Monday that the Perbadanan Kemajuan Filem Nasional Malaysia Act 1981 (Act 244), which established Finas, can not override the recently implemented changes to the Employment Act, which took effect in January 1, 2023.
“The view that Finas has the authority to take action or set the working hours of art practitioners is incorrect, in fact, legally it is contradictory,” he said, “I hope that the confusion and misinterpretation by some people regarding Finas’ authority regarding working overtime involving artistes, especially actors and production crew members, are corrected with this clarification.”
He added that Finas will meet with the Professional Actors Association (Seniman), Professional Film Workers’ Association of Malaysia (Profima) and stakeholders to discuss the matter further.
The amendment, which the CEO said applies to film industry employees, reduces the work hours in a week to 45 hours, increases maternity leave to 98 days, and increases paternity leave to seven days.
