The Human Resources Development Fund has been corporatised in order to upgrade training programmes for workers in the private sector who face threats of globalisation, said Human Resource Minister Fong Chan Onn today.

"Effective today, the Human Resource Development Act 1992 will be abolished and replaced by the Human Resources Development Limited (HRDL) Act (Act 612)," said the minister.

Fong who was speaking at a post-cabinet meeting at his office in Pusat Bandar Damansara, Kuala Lumpur, explained that this "development" was in line with the corporatisation of the Human Resource Development Council (HRDC).

"The HRDL Act will see the setting-up of a company that will become the shareholder of the Human Resources Development Fund and will manage the fund," he said.

Fong added that the fund was corporatised in order for it to play a more proactive role in ensuring better training and retraining for private sector workers who face threats brought on by globalisation, the k-economy and information technology.

Better services

According to the minister, the HRDL company would provide better services to employers and improve cooperation between employer associations and training providers. It would also furnish better training programmes for workers in the small and medium-scale industries, he added.

"Grants and loans will be considered by HRDL company to enable employers and training providers to develop programmes in line with new training programmes and new technology," he said.

Section 25 of the HRDL Act 2001 states that an employer who fails to apply for any claims within the period stipulated by the board of directors from its registration date or the date the company received financial assistance, would be deemed to have lost its eligibility to receive any financial assistance after that period.

Fong also commented that his ministry will look for alternative employment for the 200 workers recently retrenched from Tongkah Holdings, a Penang-based electronics company. The workers claimed they did not receive any compensation.