SIVABALAN POOBALASINGAM v. KUWAIT FINANCE HOUSE (MALAYSIA) BERHAD
INDUSTRIAL COURT, KUALA LUMPUR
JAMHIRAH ALI
AWARD NO. 132 OF 2016 [CASE NO: 7/4-459/13]
12 FEBRUARY 2016

DISMISSAL: Retrenchment - Redundancy - Claimant retrenched - Whether he had been offered alternative employment within the company - Evidence adduced - Whether redundancy had clearly been an excuse to get rid of him

DISMISSAL: Retrenchment - Redundancy - Claimant retrenched - Whether the claimant had possessed the required experience and skill set to spearhead the new business plan with regard to sukuk funds - Evidence adduced - Effect of - Whether the claimant's removal had been an excuse to replace him with COW1's candidate of choice - Whether that had shown mala fide intent on the part of the company

DISMISSAL: Retrenchment - Redundancy - Claimant retrenched - Whether the claimant's role in the company had ceased to exist - Evidence adduced - Claimant's functions and duties transferred to another - Effect of - Whether he had been surplus to the company's needs - Factors to consider - Company's actions towards him - Whether it had been fair

DISMISSAL: Retrenchment - Redundancy - Claimant retrenched - Whether the retrenchment had been carried out bona fide - Factors to consider - Evidence adduced by the company - Effect of - Whether the claimant's replacement had been better suited for the job - Claimant's skill set - Whether the claimant had been given the opportunity to handle the sukuk funds - What the company should have done

EVIDENCE: Burden of proof - Whether discharged by the company - Factors to consider

INDUSTRIAL COURT: Remedies - Compensation - Claimant seeking EPF payments - Whether ought to be allowed - Factors to consider - Determination of quantum

INDUSTRIAL COURT: Remedies - Compensation in lieu of reinstatement - Whether should include punitive compensation - Factors to consider - What would be a reasonable amount to award

NORBERT FINGER v. SANTINA RESORT (TRG) SDN BHD
INDUSTRIAL COURT, KUALA LUMPUR
ANNA NG FUI CHOO
AWARD NO. 157 OF 2016 [CASE NO: 3(15)/4-1211/13]
19 FEBRUARY 2016

CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT: Terms and conditions - Allowances - Claimant making claims for his car instalment payments, his housing loan, his property rental, air tickets and Director's fees - Whether he had been entitled to them - Factors to consider - Perusal of his contract of employment - Effect of

CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT: Terms and conditions - Notice of termination - Whether the claimant had been terminated by the company - Claimant alleging that he had still been an employee of the company - Company issuing him a termination notice - Perusal of

DISMISSAL: Misconduct - Claimant issuing a Letter of Demand and a Winding-Up notice for his outstanding salaries to the company - Whether it had constituted misconduct - Whether proven by the company - Factors to consider - Evidence adduced - Effect of - Whether it had constituted a grave and serious misconduct - Whether he had been in breach of his fiduciary duties to the company - Whether his misconduct had been serious enough to justify his dismissal - Perusal of the claimant's contract of employment - Effect of - Whether dismissal without just cause and excuse

EVIDENCE: Adverse inference - Non-production of a material witness - Company failing to call Ahmad Sobri - Whether the burden had been on the company to call him as a witness - Factors to consider - Effect of - Whether an adverse inference ought to be drawn against the company - Evidence Act 1950, ss. 101 & 114(g)

EVIDENCE: Witness - Credibility - Whether the claimant and CLW1 had been credible witnesses - Factors to consider

INDUSTRIAL COURT: Jurisdiction - Whether the Industrial Court had the jurisdiction to hear this matter - Factors to consider - Whether the claimant had been terminated by the company - Effect of

INDUSTRIAL COURT: Procedure - Action - Whether the claimant had filed his claims for outstanding salaries in the proper forum - Factors to consider - Effect of - What he should have done

I have done numerous "motivational programs" for organisations and surprisingly, 95% of them are for low-level staff; rarely, if ever, for managers. And when asked, most organisations reply by saying, "These low-level staff are demotivated and we think that a motivational course will help".

Growth and profit isn't everything in business. Good managers know that good attract good. Take care of your staff and customers, and your business will grow.

The country's civil servants union has urged the Government to re-examine the stricter controls on overtime and other measures introduced to optimise public expenditure, saying it could hit lower-ranking staff badly. Cuepacs president Datuk Azih Muda said many lower ranking public servants depended on their overtime to supplement their basic salaries in order to make end meet in view of the rising cost of living.

Leaders today can no longer wait for opportunities to come before they start their improvement initiatives. Every leader must start at exactly where he or she is and begin to create positive change for the company. They can explore change initiatives within the company and outside. In the external environment, they need to be more discerning about customer needs, competitors, business opportunities and industry changes, and their impact on the company.

When customers demand more, you could oblige by raising prices or getting more investment. But whatever you do, the key thing to remember is this: Never risk your entire business by expanding too quickly and without a proper financial plan.

As busy working executives with families, none of us are strangers to the feeling of not having enough time. Not enough time to finish our work, not enough time to spend with our families, not enough time to get all our errands done, not enough time to go on vacation... and the list goes on. "No time-lah" seem to be such a common catchphrase that we hear it everywhere.

We all know confident women and confident female leaders. The light up the room when they arrive and they always leave a positive impression. They seem to have an indefinable “something” that makes them special, and perhaps even inspiring. Very little stands in the way of emulating the confidence of those female leaders who inspire you. And it's unlikely they were born so confident. It took mindfulness and practice, so if they can do it, so can you.

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